The DaSilva Download – June Edition

Search Is Having a Midlife Crisis (and I’m Kind of Into It)

May felt like one long reminder that search — and AI — are right in the middle of their midlife crisis. The rules are shifting, everyone’s figuring it out in real time, and honestly? I love it.

This is why we do the work — to test, to experiment, to watch it all evolve.

So without further ado.. here’s what caught my eye this month…

✨ Good News

Last month felt like a lot (especially in university news), so I went digging for something ridiculous — and wow, this delivered.

Apparently, we still don’t fully understand how tickling works… so naturally, a university in the Netherlands built a full-on tickle lab. Mechanical tickle chairs.

Brain scans. Ticklish rats. Peak science. Honestly, I respect the hustle.

For the hard science you were expecting in this newsletter » Read more

🎓 Tip of the Month

My goal for the year was to make flowjo, (my card deck company) as AI-forward as possible — partly to test the limits, partly to see where AI actually helps, and mostly to keep learning.

The biggest thing I’ve learned? It’s all about mindset. Before you prompt, ask yourself:

If I had to hand this task to an intern I’ll never meet, who has to repeat it perfectly every day, what exact instructions would I give?

Here are a few tricks I’ve used lately:

When AI isn’t quite nailing it:

• “That was a 4/10. I need a 10/10 — impress me.”

• “If this doesn’t {insert goal}, I get fired — it’s that important.”

• “Rewrite as version 10 after 9 rounds of expert feedback.”

• “Act like you’re being paid $1M for this.”

When improving my own prompting:

• After: “What should I have asked to get this result sooner?”

• Before: “What questions do you need to answer this better?”

When generating ads or creative:

• “Pretend you’re a TikTok influencer with 2M followers...”

• “Flat lay, shot on an iPhone 14 or older — make it feel real, not polished.”

• “Create ‘ugly ads’ — lo-fi, iPhone style, scroll-stopping.”

Hope it helps!

👀 What I’m Keeping an Eye On

📚 Google I/O 2025 was a BEAST.. and left us with a glimpse of the Future?
Google’s annual event basically blew up the internet this year — AI Mode, SGE changes, and a whole new playbook for SEO Here’s some of the things I learned about from Google I/O and how it’s changing SEO. Read my Medium Post.

🧪 Claude leaked. 25,000 AI queries analyzed. TLDR: rankings still rule.
The Claude leak shows LLMs only pull live sources when they trigger a search, while a 25K-query study found top 10 Google rankings massively increase your chances of being cited in AI Overviews.

👋 Zuckerberg wants an “infinite creative” AI ad world.. but does it make sense? Zuck wants advertisers to hand Meta a budget and a goal — then AI handles everything: creative, targeting, optimization, even reporting. Agencies? Optional. Trust? TBD. Read more.

🧪 The Gandalf game is here to humble your prompting skills — if you think you're good, prepare to get roasted (in the best way). Play Now.

🔍 Gen Z: if my data’s out there, I might as well get paid.
A new startup is paying Gen Z to install trackers on their phones — offering $50+ a month for browsing, shopping, and streaming data that powers polling and market research. Read the article.

💊 Free Puppies? Yes please.
AI Video has made some MASSIVE leaps this month. One creator used Google’s VEO model to produce a fake prescription ad for “Puppramin” — aka, the free puppies pill — and it looks like something you’d see during primetime TV. Watch the video

🚀 What I’m Focused on Now

In May I spent a lot of time teaching AI to some fellow female entrepreneurs — and honestly, it was lovely.

But the learning never stops. Here’s what I worked through myself last month:

• Make Ads that Convert 2025 — Presented by Motion

And what I’m getting ready for next:

• Optimize Pages for AI Search with AEO — Steve Toth / CXL

🔥 Vibe Check

📬 Let’s Talk!

That’s June. Lots of learning, testing, and more questions than answers (as usual).

💬 If you’re playing with AI, hacking prompts, or watching SEO get weird — I want to hear what you’re seeing.
🧠 Got something you want me to unpack next month?
📩 Just hit reply — I read every single one.

And if this gave you even one “huh, that’s interesting” moment, feel free to pass it along to another marketer in the trenches with us.

See you in July 🌸
Tiffany