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In this episode of the Near Memo, Mike Blumenthal and Greg Sterling unpack Google’s dramatic shift toward an AI-first search ecosystem — including the rollout of Know Before you Go in Maps, ads in the new AI Mode in Search & Maps, and the introduction oof Gemini 3 what that means for personalization and marketers.

We explore:

• Google Maps’ new AI-powered interfaces — including Know Before You Go and the prominent “Ask” module that pulls data from reviews, websites, and third-party sources. We discuss how Google is reshaping the local experience by elevating AI-generated insights above traditional organic content.

• Google’s new reviewer aliases and their implications — from anonymity and fraud concerns to how aliases complicate trust, moderation, business intelligence, and the already-confusing review ecosystem.

• Ads quietly invading AI Mode — what early experiments show about ad placement, user behavior, declining click-through rates, and Google’s likely future ad units as the AI interface becomes the top of the SERP.

• Google’s monopoly strategy in the AI race — including how Google is leveraging its scale, distribution, defaults, and product integrations to push Gemini over ChatGPT, claw back market share, and extend its dominance into AI search experiences despite weak antitrust remedies.

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Bonus Episode: How to Release Your Trust Issues & Get Excited to Date