Search engine optimisation (SEO) is the process of tuning a content or web page so that it can be easily discovered by search engines like Google and Bing.
However, web search, as we know it, has drastically changed, thanks to ChatGPT, Perplexity, and other similar AI tools that can search the web. So, naturally, the way content creators or marketers tune their content will also be influenced by it. Enter Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO)—a new strategy designed for the age of AI-driven search.
Generative Engine Optimisation, The New Game?
In an interaction with AIM about AI startups, Paul Ravindranath G, program manager, developer relations of startup and expert programmes at Google India, said, “I was at an event where somebody showed me a very interesting approach. Traditionally, we do SEO, search engine optimisation. And this person I was talking to told me, ‘I’m doing GEO generative engine optimisation.’”
He observed that AI is fundamentally changing the landscape of marketing, noting that the changes underway are unfolding in ways few could have anticipated.
Traditionally, SEO was all about links, structured hierarchies of authority and relevance calculated by spiders and ranks. As per a blog post by a16z, GEO is about language. The content that shows up in a model’s answer isn’t pulled from a top-ten list, it’s generated from what the model has retained, understood, and deemed useful. Visibility means being referenced, not just ranked.
LLMs like GPT-4o, Claude, and Gemini don’t crawl websites; they engage in conversations with users. Moreover, they synthesise across sources, remember user intent, and respond with multi-layered reasoning. In that world, content optimisation requires a shift. Precision and repetition take a back seat. Instead, the focus turns to clarity, semantic richness, and context awareness.
“Phrases like ‘in summary’ or bullet-point formatting help LLMs extract and reproduce content effectively,” A16Z wrote in the blog. GEO requires content to be not just relevant, but legible to machines.
While the SEO ad market ran on clicks, GEO runs on references. That changes business incentives entirely. Since many LLMs are subscription-based and not ad-driven, there’s less motivation to surface third-party content unless it enhances the user experience. Yet, outbound traffic isn’t dead. ChatGPT, for example, still drives referrals to thousands of domains. The key difference is that it’s not about who shouts the loudest, but who the model remembers first.
Content Adapting to Generative AI to Minimise Impact
As per a recent report by Search Engine Land, AI Overviews, Google’s new generative summaries in Search, are dramatically altering how content is discovered and consumed. By delivering fast, conversational answers sourced from multiple websites, these summaries reduce the need for users to click through to the original content.
This shift has serious consequences for SEO, including declining traffic, attribution, and click-through rates, as traditional organic listings are pushed down. Even though inclusion in an Overview might boost brand visibility or authority, it rarely results in measurable traffic or leads.
While Google’s AI-powered features in Search are indeed damaging organic traffic, new opportunities are emerging with the rise of AI-driven search engines like Perplexity.
According to some marketers, users’ habit of going to Google for a search is shifting to rely on platforms like Perplexity, and ChatGPT.
Bandan Singh, head of product at Riverty, wrote in a blog post, “I started noting that perplexity wasn’t blabbering, but also giving me links to the source of information. Selectively, I will dive into links, but 99% of the time, I would be satisfied with the answer perplexity gave me.”
Whatever the case may be, it is clear that AI is at the forefront of the new search experience for netizens. And, with that in the landscape, GEO, the new concept, is becoming more relevant for marketers, content creators, and webmasters.
What Does It Look Like for GEO?
Legacy SEO firms are racing to keep up. Semrush now offers an AI toolkit for GEO, while Ahrefs’ Brand Radar helps companies monitor how they’re framed in AI Overviews. These tools offer more than metrics; they reveal how a brand is encoded in the generative layer of the internet.
GEO is a new layer of the internet. Hemant Mohapatra, partner at Lightspeed India, pointed out on X, “Search TAM isn’t getting fragmented; it’s actually expanding with AI.”
He noted that while traditional search experience may decline, especially among Gen Z and Gen Alpha, the appetite for discovery through AI is rising.
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