Good topic, we should discuss this.

The best approach, although not perfect, was that of the DMOZ directory, which had volunteer gatekeepers for a topic/category. For example, 2-3 SEO experts oversaw the "SEO" category and determined which websites would be included in that category. Not all websites made it; only those with the best content were accepted. You had to apply for it.

I believe later Google bought this directory and initially used it for its own classification of good websites. But then it killed it shortly after, because apparently other criteria— and I suspect they were the same criteria that led to Google's degeneration— became more relevant.

The disadvantage of this approach was, of course, that human moderation also allowed for the possibility of corruption. But it was still better than using AI for that.

In any case, it cannot be done without human expert evaluation. A good search engine is not just a technical issue, but also a social one.

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