Google Hong Kong Year in Search 2025: Al Tools Dominate Top Trending Keywords, From "Searching for Al" to "Searching with Al"

Google Hong Kong today announced its Year in Search 2025, compiling keywords with the highest search volume increases over the past year, offering a data-driven look back at the topics that captured the city's attention in 2025. The release includes 14 lists covering keywords, news, people, entertainment, and leisure.

Google Hong Kong today announced its Year in Search 2025. Photo source: Google

AI Tools Claim 4 of Top 10 Keywords

Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools captured four spots on the "Top Trending Keywords" list, including "DeepSeek" at No. 1, followed by "Grok", "Doubao”, and "Google Gemini". This reflects a significant interest among Hong Kongers in exploring and applying various AI technologies. Meanwhile, "67", a slang term popular among Gen Z and Gen Alpha globally, topped the "Top Trending Slang Terms" list.

Photo source: Google

Photo source: Google

Local News Dominated by Weather and Public Health

The heartbreaking "Wang Fuk Court" fire in Tai Po ranked as the No. 2 Trending Keyword and topped the "Top Trending Local News" list. Weather and public health issues accounted for another three spots each on the local news list. Faced with record-breaking tropical cyclone warnings and frequent black rainstorms, Hong Kongers turned to Google for real-time, practical information on "Black Rainstorm Signal", "Severe Tropical Storm Wipha", and "Super Typhoon Ragasa" to navigate the challenges. Infectious disease information regarding "Chikungunya fever" and "Norovirus", as well as "Etomidate (space oil drug)", also drew significant concern.

Beyond local affairs, Hong Kongers kept a close watch on global dynamics. The "Top Trending Global News" covered the viral "Nanjing Sister Hong" incident, international politics such as the situation in "Iran" and "Tariff" policies, as well as natural disasters including the "Tropical Storm in the Philippines", "Earthquakes in Japan", and "Earthquakes in Thailand".

Photo source: Google

Photo source: Google

Sports Stars and Viral Sensations Lead People Lists

From politicians and elite athletes to content creators and newsmakers, the people Hong Kongers searched for spanned a wide spectrum. Hong Kong tennis prodigy “Coleman Wong", who made local history in international tournaments, topped the "Top Trending Local People" list. Meanwhile, "Nanjing Sister Hong", who became a viral sensation, topped both the "Top Trending Global News" and "Top Trending Global People" lists.

Photo source: Google

Photo source: Google

Kai Tak Sports Park Emerges as New Landmark for Mega Events; Nicholas Tse Takes "Double Top Spot"

In entertainment, “Nicholas Tse”, who held a solo concert in Hong Kong after a multi-year hiatus, claimed the No. 1 spot on both the "Top Trending Local Celebrities" and "Top Trending Concerts" lists. One of his classic hits, "Jade Butterfly" also ranked No. 10 on the "Top Trending Lyrics" list. International superstars “Coldplay” topped the "Top Trending Global Celebrities" list, with their concert ranking No. 10 on the concerts list. Additionally, "Golden", the theme song from a global hit animated movie, topped the "Top Trending Lyrics" list.

Notably, with the opening of the "Kai Tak Sports Park" (No. 7 on the "Top Trending Local News" list) last year, the venue has become a new landmark for mega events including music concerts. Seven out of the top ten "Top Trending Concerts" were or are to be held at this major sports infrastructure.

Photo source: Google

Photo source: Google

Photo source: Google

Photo source: Google

Local Films Take Half of "Top Trending Movies"; "Ne Zha 2" Takes First Place

"Ne Zha 2", which ranked No. 10 on the overall keywords list, also claimed the top spot on the "Top Trending Movies" list. Local productions occupied five spots in the top ten, including the talk-of-the-town "Sons of the Neon Night" and the original local animation "Another World". "The Queen of News 2" topped the "Top Trending Dramas & Shows" list.

Photo source: Google

Photo source: Google

Hong Kongers Search Weather for Mainland and Japan Travel; "Peach gum" Tops Recipes

"Peach gum" topped the "Top Trending Recipes" list. Interestingly, "Soups for liver health in spring" ranked third, reflecting a shift in search habits: users are tending to include multiple conditions in a single search (such as efficacy + food category) to find the desired recipe more precisely and efficiently.

The "Top Trending Outbound Destinations' Weather Forecast" list was led by "Toronto", a popular city for Hong Kong immigrants, followed by Vietnam's rising star “Phu Quoc". The list also highlighted the dual trend of traveling northbound and to Japan, with Mainland Chinese cities taking half the spots (five) and Japanese regions taking three.

Photo source: Google

Photo source: Google

Reimagining the way we search: From "Searching for AI" to "Searching with AI"

Last year, four of the top ten trending keywords in Hong Kong were related to AI tools, reflecting a keen interest in discovering and applying AI. However, trends show that people are moving beyond just "searching for AI tools" to "using AI to search".

Conversational queries unlock new discoveries

As Google Search adds and enhances AI capabilities to better understand natural language, users are asking questions in a more conversational way, just like talking to a friend. They are not just looking for a quick answer but also wanting to understand more about the world around them.

In the US, Google data shows that searches for "tell me about..." are up 70% year over year, and queries starting with "How do I..." reached an all-time high with a 25% increase from last year (2024). The latter included trending questions like "How do I know if my Labubu is real?".

Similar search patterns are also seen in Hong Kong. For instance, when a typhoon hits and people look for weather information with the help of Google Search, it's noted from the typhoon related queries that people aren't just checking for weather warnings and signals; they use Google to plan their lives with specific, practical questions like "What time will T8 be hoisted", "What tape to use for typhoons", and "How long will the typhoon last".

This curiosity extends to current affairs, with Hong Kongers asking questions like "Why is
IShowSpeed famous" to understand the context behind headlines such as his viral visit to the city.

Good news for people who regret the Gmail address they came up with when they registered for an account: Google is now letting users change it.

Google started quietly rolling out the change late last year in India and said this week in a blog post that it’s now available for all Google Account users in the United States. There were no details on when it would be available to users in other countries.

Google's CEO suggested the update will be welcomed by people who want to keep their accounts but have outgrown the awkward, embarrassing or nonsensical Gmail handles they created after the service launched 22 years ago.

“2004 was a good year, but your Gmail address doesn’t need to be stuck in it,” Sundar Pichai wrote in a post on X, adding that the policy change means users could “say goodbye to v0t3f0rp3dr02004@gmail.com or mrbrightside416@gmail.com (or whatever you were into at the time).”

The company also updated a help page to reflect the new policy. Here's a quick run-through:

The procedure is fairly easy to follow. First, go to your Google Account page. From the Google homepage in your computer browser or the Google mobile app, click the account icon in the top right corner, and then click or tap Manage your Google Account, then Personal info, then Email.

You should be able to click Change Google Account email. If you don't see it, you might not have the option yet. Google says it's “gradually rolling out to all users."

Now you'll have to enter your new address so make sure you have an idea for what you want. Then click to confirm that you want to make the change. Google says addresses can't be identical to any existing address or one that was “used by someone in the past and then deleted.”

But what if you miss your old Gmail address? Don't worry, you'll still be able to access it because Google is effectively creating a second Gmail address.

The old address will remain as an alternate and messages sent to either the old or new addresses will appear in your Gmail inbox. To find out which address an email was sent to, check the “to” field.

You can switch back to the old address by changing the settings in your Google account.

If you don't like the new Gmail address you've created, unfortunately you're out of luck - at least for the next year. Google won't let you create another Gmail address for your account until 12 months have passed. And you can only do so three times in total.

Gmail addresses are also used to sign in to other Google services like YouTube, Google Docs as well as third-party websites and apps. But the company warns that some non-Google apps and services might not recognize you with the new Gmail address, so it provided some troubleshooting tips on a help page.

Google also says Chromebook users might encounter problems, though many issues will go away after a few hours. It advises users to check a troubleshooting page but warned that if the problems persist, “you may need to change back to your previous Google Account email,” although the new address can still be used to send and receive messages.

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FILE- This March 20, 2018, file photo shows the Gmail app on an iPad in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)