Where AI search stands today
Generative engines now intercept a growing share of top-of-funnel research. Users still verify with Google, but the first answer they read is increasingly generated. Brands that appear in that first answer set the terms of the follow-up.
What actually moved the needle in the last 12 months
- Perplexity and ChatGPT search adoption in B2B research workflows
- Google AI Overviews expanding to commercial-intent queries
- Structured data and clear entity definitions correlating with citation rate
- Reddit and YouTube emerging as consistently cited sources
Metrics worth tracking
Share of voice on target prompts, citation rate per engine, sentiment in AI answers, and downstream branded search lift. Vanity impressions do not translate; prompt-level presence does.
What to do this quarter
- Instrument prompt tracking on your top 50 buyer questions
- Audit the pages AI engines cite about you and fix the weakest ones
- Publish crisp comparison and definition pages for every core term
- Earn coverage on sources that engines already trust in your category
