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The Algorithm Finally Learned to Read: Why Google and LinkedIn Just Changed Everything

  • Writer: rporterwhite
    rporterwhite
  • Dec 18, 2025
  • 3 min read

Google and LinkedIn just made the same move. Both replaced signal-counting with AI that actually reads.


Google's had E-E-A-T guidelines forever, but now LLMs can detect authentic expertise. LinkedIn's 360Brew does the same: reads your profile, reads your posts, checks alignment. It's about time!



What Actually Changed


LinkedIn deployed 360Brew in late 2025. It’s a 150-billion-parameter AI model that replaced thousands of separate ranking systems with one unified brain. Instead of tracking clicks and connections, it reads. It understands that "revenue intelligence platform" and "CRM integration" are related concepts, even if you never used those exact terms.

The old system asked: "Did this post get engagement?"


The new system asks: "Does this content demonstrate real expertise? Does it align with what this person actually knows?"


Google tightened its E-E-A-T evaluation with the December 2025 core update. E-E-A-T stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness — and Google's had these guidelines for years. But now, with LLM capabilities baked into the algorithm, Google can actually understand whether content comes from someone with genuine knowledge or just someone who's good at keyword research.


Both platforms made the same fundamental shift: from counting signals to understanding meaning.


What Died


Keyword stuffing. They both run on AI that understands context now. Google and LinkedIn can both read the semantic meaning of your content. Cramming keywords doesn't fool an AI that actually comprehends what you're saying.


Engagement pods. They read if comments are real. LinkedIn's 360Brew specifically detects forced or misleading engagement patterns. Generic "great post!" comments from the same group of people? The algorithm knows.


Generic "10 tips" listicles. They spot recycled advice. When the AI has read millions of posts about "design system best practices," it knows which ones are just repackaging existing information and which ones offer something new.


What Wins vs. What Loses


What wins: "We scaled our design system and cut dev time 75%. Here's what failed first."


What loses: "Top 10 design system best practices."


The difference? One demonstrates actual experience. The other could have been written by anyone who spent 20 minutes on Google.


LinkedIn's data backs this up: posts with clear, specific insights about real work now get 3-7x more reach than generic advice. And when reach did happen, it wasn't the old "viral in the first hour" pattern; it was sustained engagement across different professional clusters over days.


Google's seeing the same pattern. Sites with demonstrated expertise and first-hand experience are gaining visibility, while generic content farms are losing it. The December 2025 update hit affiliate sites particularly hard (71% affected), especially those without original insights or expert oversight.


Why This Matters


For years, visibility and credibility required different skill sets.


You needed SEO tactics for search, engagement hacks for social, and actual expertise for your job.


Now the platforms can read. Which means visibility and credibility just became the same thing.


Your LinkedIn headline says "Enterprise SaaS Sales VP" but you're posting about crypto, meditation, travel photography, and AI art? The algorithm literally can't figure out what you're expert in. Your content doesn't get matched to relevant audiences.


Your website publishes thin content or AI-generated posts without expert review? Google's algorithm knows. It can tell the difference between content written by someone who's done the work and content written by someone who's just hitting publish.


What This Means for You


The shift rewards one thing: consistency between who you say you are and what you actually know.


On LinkedIn, that means:


  • Your profile (headline, About section, experience) acts as your "topical anchor"

  • Your posts should align with that expertise 80%+ of the time

  • Topic clarity wins over topic variety


On Google, that means:


  • Author credentials and first-hand experience matter more than ever

  • AI-generated content without expert oversight gets filtered out

  • Sites need to demonstrate clear expertise in their niche, not try to rank for everything


The good news? Have you been building real expertise all along? You're about to rise. Have you been building superficial visibility? You'll feel the decline.


Because these algorithms don't amplify noise. They amplify meaning.


Finally.


Learn More


Want to dig deeper into how these algorithms work? Here are some resources:


On LinkedIn's 360Brew:



On Google's E-E-A-T Evolution:


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