As I noted below, <b> and <i> are meant to be typographically-significant elements, so it's not just byte-saving. Google is using <b> and <i> correctly in that

As I noted below, <b> and <i> are meant to be typographically-significant elements, so it's not just byte-saving. Google is using <b> and <i> correctly in that case (even if that's just a happy accident).