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Dear humans, this is my little opinion piece about the future of SEO and AI.
The current role of SEO in AI chats
AI chat usage is in 2024 roughly 6% the size Google search.
Which role does SEO play in getting a piece of the AI chats traffic pie?
SEO = AI answer optimization
Many SEO’s are already playing this game. And winning. Very small market compared to Google though (6%). So mostly done as a fun sport.
The transformation is already happening and it is less dramatic than most people think.
Guess how AI “ranks” if you ask it for the best flower store in New York?
Very similar to Google. Actually in many cases similar to Google in 2010, so it’s currently rather easy to manipulate for AI search.
Google also released their AI in search results in the US. Last I checked it was embarrassingly easy to manipulate it so your website gets added as a source.
So while a lot is being turned upside down, this new world is, at least so far, oddly familiar.
One big change:
Providing informational content like “how to tie a tie” will eventually become a bad investment. AI will just steal the content you worked hard on and display it to the user so they don’t have to go to your website. Unless regulators step in ©️
To be fair this tactic of providing generic information is often overrated. Commercial searches like “modern ties” is where the real money is.
If AI truly becomes all knowing – this will happen:
But what happens if AI somehow get’s so good and so popular, that it totally removes the need for search?
If we reach a point where AI is the most trusted advisor in your life, then the most expensive “real estate” in the world will be to appear in the answer.
If you no longer ask friends or search for purchase recommendations, but instead you ask AI, then companies will throw all their efforts into appearing in AI answers.
If all utopian AI dreams come true, SEO will explode.
Simply because there will be no other market out there, than to appear in the AI results.
Why bother asking anyone but an AI, if the AI always knows best?
The growing 200 billion SEO market will 10x very fast.
Or maybe it’s not called SEO anymore. You can call it AIO (AI Optimization) or whatever, but the skills needed for this game, will be very similar to SEO.
So I believe this would be the natural next step for people in this industry.
But can this happen in the next 10 years?
I can’t see how AI will get good and deep enough data in the next 10 years for this to (fully) kick off though.
You would need an insane amount of e.g. “word of mouth” and honest customer review data to make it accurate enough.
The AI basically needs to know every little word on the street about what’s going on, which company is currently (for real) the best in their category or which uknown movies or songs are really perfect for your taste.
This would require an INSANE amount of data.
Data which the world currently does not have.
AI is already running out of data as we speak
But maybe Elons robots will run around and gather that for the AI?
Then we have all the legal roadblocks. Do we allow robots to go around scanning every little corner talk everywhere?
Unless we do, I don’t see how the above scenario can fully play out.
So what will happen instead?
I believe the scenario I outline in this article to be way more likely:
Will AI grow bigger than Google search? 2020-2028 statistics and my predictions
Thanks for reading my opinion piece on AI and SEO.
Always happy to discuss this and get new insights – hit me up on Linkedin 👨🚀👍️
