Everyone's panicking about AI search. We read the patents, job postings, and official guidance so you don't have to.
Patrick Gallagher
Founder, Fokal
Generative Engine Optimization is either the future of search or a rebranded consulting package, depending on who you ask. Same with AEO vs SEO. The acronyms keep multiplying, but the underlying question is simple: do AI search engines actually work differently, and if so, how?
We went looking for generative engine optimization statistics and strategy guidance in the only places that matter: patent filings, official company statements, and hiring data. Not blog posts. Not conference speculation. Primary sources.
This is generative engine optimization strategy built on evidence, not assumptions.
No. But the AI impact on SEO is real, and it's reshaping everything faster than most people realize.
Here's what's actually happening: traffic is down for many sites, but conversions are up. Clicks are disappearing into AI-generated answers. The old metrics say you're failing while the new metrics say you're winning.
The future of SEO isn't about gaming algorithms. It's about becoming the source that AI systems trust enough to cite. That's what we found when we analyzed what Google and OpenAI are actually building:
SEO isn't dead. The rules are just being rewritten.
We read everything both companies published in 2025. Turns out, what they agree on is surprisingly boring—and that's good news.
Read the analysisEveryone's speculating. We read the patents instead. What Google and OpenAI are building is weirder than the conference talks suggest.
Read the analysisThat's 16% more than Google's top offer. When a startup outbids the search giant for search talent, priorities get telegraphed.
Read the analysisOne's overhauling an empire. The other's building from scratch. Only one approach wins—and the winner decides how your content gets found.
Read the analysisAI clusters your pages and picks ONE to represent the group. If it picks wrong, your best content is invisible.
Read the analysisThe old metrics said you were failing. The new metrics say you're winning. Here's how to tell the difference.
Read the analysisWe don't cite blogs citing blogs. Every claim traces back to patents, official statements, or job postings.
We're not selling "AEO packages" or "AI SEO secrets." We report what the companies actually say.
AI search moves fast. We re-analyze when Google or OpenAI publishes something new.
Sources we analyze:
USPTO patent filings · Google Search Central · Bing Webmaster Blog · OpenAI official posts · Job postings & compensation data · Search Off the Record podcast · Google I/O sessions
No, SEO is not dead, but the AI impact on SEO is fundamentally changing how it works. Traditional ranking signals still matter, but there's a new layer: AI citation. The future of SEO is about becoming a trusted source that AI systems like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google's AI Overviews choose to cite. Sites are seeing fewer clicks but higher conversion rates because AI pre-qualifies visitors before they arrive. The rules aren't disappearing. They're being rewritten around quality, authority, and clear answers that AI can understand and reference.
AEO stands for Answer Engine Optimization—the practice of optimizing content to appear as a direct answer in AI-powered search results. Unlike traditional SEO which focuses on ranking pages, AEO focuses on being cited as a source when AI tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Google's AI Overviews generate responses. Key AEO tactics include structuring content around specific questions, using clear entity definitions, and ensuring your content is easily parseable by AI systems.
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is a term coined by researchers to describe optimization strategies specifically for AI-generated search results. While similar to AEO, GEO focuses on how large language models select and synthesize sources. Research from Princeton and Georgia Tech found that including quotations, statistics, and citing authoritative sources increased visibility in AI-generated responses by 30-40%. GEO represents the shift from optimizing for algorithms to optimizing for AI understanding.
You don't "rank" in AI search the way you do in Google. Instead, you become a source that AI cites. To increase your citation rate: (1) Create content that directly answers specific questions—not generic overviews; (2) Include verifiable facts, statistics, and original data; (3) Build topical authority by creating comprehensive coverage of your domain; (4) Ensure your content is accessible to web crawlers (Perplexity uses its own crawler, ChatGPT uses Bing's index). The brands that get cited most consistently are those seen as authoritative, original sources—not those with the highest domain authority.
Perplexity AI uses a combination of real-time web crawling and its own index. When you search, it: (1) Identifies high-quality sources relevant to your query; (2) Retrieves and reads the actual content from those pages; (3) Synthesizes an answer drawing from multiple sources; (4) Provides inline citations so you can verify claims. Unlike ChatGPT, Perplexity accesses live web content for every search rather than relying primarily on training data. This makes fresh, well-structured content more likely to be cited.
No—but it will reshape it. Traditional SEO still matters for the majority of searches. However, AI-powered features are expanding rapidly: Google's AI Overviews appear in 30%+ of searches, ChatGPT has 200M+ weekly users, and Perplexity is growing fast. The good news is there's significant overlap between what works for AI search and traditional SEO: clear content structure, authoritative sourcing, and genuine expertise. The brands that will win are those optimizing for both simultaneously.
See where your brand appears across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, and Gemini—before your competitors do.