AI search refers to search experiences powered by large language models that return generated answers rather than traditional ranked lists of blue links. The main AI search interfaces today are ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, Microsoft Copilot and Grok. AI search is changing how users discover information and how brands earn visibility.
Traditional search returns ten blue links and lets the user click through. AI search synthesizes an answer from multiple sources, cites a subset of them, and returns the answer directly. The user often never visits the source site. Brands win by being cited, not by ranking.
Schema markup, structured content, llms.txt files, entity recognition signals (Wikipedia, Wikidata), citation patterns on high-trust user-generated content sites (Reddit, Stack Exchange) and content explicitly written for extraction. These are the inputs to Answer Engine Optimization.
Audit your site's readiness with the free Website AI Agent Readiness Check. Ship llms.txt, an AI Instructions page, and proper Article + Organization schema. Then build entity strength through Wikipedia, Wikidata and citation placement.
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