The shortcut for the app "Textra" is on my homepage and when I restart my device or if my Google now fails to load, Textra is removed from the home screen and I have to re-add is from the app menu.
Welcome to Android Central! Do any other app shortcuts disappear as well?
When is Google Now (now called the Google Discover feed or Google Assistant) failing to load? Does that happen frequently? Is there an error message when that happens?