AI Search Is Here. When Do You Start Paying Attention?
In the mid-90s, something quietly began reshaping how we discover information: SEO.
Most marketers didn’t take it seriously at first. It was experimental. It was a niche. Fast forward 30 years, and SEO is now foundational to digital strategy.
Today, we’re at a similar moment. Only this time, it’s called AI Search.
And just like in the early days of SEO, some people are leaning in to learn. Others are brushing it off.
So, What Exactly Is AI Search?
AI Search is not just a new feature. It’s a shift in how people find and engage with content.
Search doesn’t live only on Google anymore. It’s happening across:
Google’s AI Overviews
ChatGPT
Perplexity
Gemini
These tools generate complete responses using AI — not just a list of links. They pull real-time content and stitch together answers based on clarity, relevance, and trustworthiness.
This is not the death of SEO. It’s the evolution of it. We’ve gone from “optimize for keywords” to “optimize for comprehension.”
From “rank high” to “be the source.”
AI Search Experience - June 2025
Why You Might Be Invisible (Even If You’re Ranking)
Ranking #1 on Google doesn’t guarantee visibility anymore.
AI tools don’t pull in full pages. They surface the most helpful passages — small sections of content that clearly answer a question.
That means your well-optimized blog post might not be included at all if it is:
Buried in a long intro
Lacking a direct answer
Difficult to summarize
Poorly structured for AI to parse
In short, you can rank and still be invisible.
How AI Search Decides What to Show
Here’s how AI tools like Google, ChatGPT, and Perplexity choose what content gets included:
Expands the query to include related and implied searches
Pulls specific passages that clearly answer the question
Compares content side by side and selects the most helpful answer
Cites trusted, structured sources — visibility comes from being chosen
Here’s the Reality
AI Search is still new.
Just like SEO in the 90s, it’s being tested and shaped in real time.
Google Search Engine - 1997
Some marketers are getting curious. They’re checking where they show up and learning what works.
Others are waiting it out.
Both are valid. But only one path gives you an edge.
If there’s one lesson the 90s taught us — besides the rise of the boy band era — it’s this:
The internet is real. And SEO is how you show up for your audience.
Now, that’s evolving again.
What You Can Do Today
You don’t need to scrap your content strategy. But you do need to adapt. Start here:
Google your top 5 queries. Are you cited in the AI Overview?
Ask ChatGPT or Perplexity the same questions. Whose content are they using?
Rewrite one key page using a short, answer-first format
Start tracking inclusion in AI-generated answers — not just keyword rankings
