Google's Secret New Search Engine "Caffeine"

Google is working on a new secret search engine technology, currently nicknamed "Caffeine," that could really shake up search results and existing Google rankings, according to PC World.

Many companies, whose businesses rely on prominent rankings on Google search results, could be forced to make some changes.

Google introduced the project in a recent blog post, and hinted that Caffeine could change the current way that search results are yielded, but it is still unclear whether companies will need to greatly alter their search engine optimization (SEO).

"For the last several months, a large team of Googlers has been working on a secret project: a next-generation architecture for Google’s web search," two engineers detailed on the official company blog.

"It’s the first step in a process that will let us push the envelope on size, indexing speed, accuracy, comprehensiveness and other dimensions. The new infrastructure sits ‘under the hood’ of Google’s search engine, which means that most users won’t notice a difference in search results. But web developers and power searchers might notice a few differences, so we’re opening up a web developer preview to collect feedback," they wrote.

So, in the interest of maintaining a place on the first page of Google search results, or preserving a top Google ranking, if companies do need to retool their SEO, the next question would be: how?

Many SEO-practitioners have made a business and an art of achieving top placement in Google search results, but with little else known about Caffeine, SEO changes likely can’t be made until the new search engine technology is unveiled. So, it seems as though prominent Google search rankings are safe for now, but who knows what can happen with a little Caffeine?