That article you shared from Discover? It might be using a mysterious Google URL now

Google's quietly changing how Android users share articles, as Discover links are getting Google's own shortener.

Apr 7, 2025 - 12:16

That article you shared from Discover? It might be using a mysterious Google URL now

Credit: Andy Walker / Android Authority

Google is deploying its own link shorteners, search.app and share.google, for content shared from Discover.
The new short links obscure source websites but retain the ability to generate rich previews with metadata like images and descriptions.
While some see little benefit beyond analytics tracking, the change is gradually expanding to more users.

If you have an Android flagship, chances are you’ve also come across and probably use Google Discover on your minus-one screen (the pane on the left of your home screen). Discover is a good source for getting the latest articles, videos, and other personalized content delivered to you, and chances are that you’d like the content and want to share it with friends and family. Google is changing how Discover content is shared on the internet, and some users may find this change unnecessary and possibly irksome.

Previously, when you shared content you spotted on Google Discover (whether from the minus-one screen or within the Google app itself), it was shared as an ordinary URL. Users who saw the URL would recognize the website if they were familiar with it. Social media websites and instant messaging apps would also generate rich preview cards from this URL (like showing the meta description and featured image) if the website followed standard web practices.