AI search is moving into the mainstream
AI-led search is moving rapidly from experimentation into a mainstream customer discovery channel.
Google reports that AI Overviews now reach more than 2.5 billion monthly active users, while AI Mode has passed one billion monthly users. Users are also increasingly asking more detailed questions rather than relying only on short search queries.
This changes how a shortlist is formed.
Buyers can now describe their requirements in detail and ask AI platforms to compare suppliers, identify trusted providers, recommend alternatives and explain which companies may be best suited to their needs.
Instead of simply searching for a category, buyers can ask:
“Who are the best providers in this category?” “Which companies should we shortlist?” “Who has the strongest expertise in this market?” “How do the leading suppliers compare?” “Which firms are most trusted for this requirement?”AI systems can then assemble an answer using company websites, publishers, reviews, industry sources and third-party references.
AI visibility is becoming measurable
One of the most important developments for marketing teams is that AI visibility is becoming easier to measure.
Google has introduced dedicated Generative AI performance reporting in Search Console, giving website owners greater visibility into how content performs across generative AI search experiences.
That matters because AI visibility can increasingly be connected to wider commercial performance rather than treated as an isolated brand metric.
SEO still matters — but the discovery environment has changed
Strong technical SEO, crawlability, useful content and clear site structure remain important foundations.
But AI search introduces another challenge: does the wider information environment give AI systems enough evidence to understand, trust and recommend your brand?
Brands increasingly need to make it easy to understand:
- What the company does
- Which products or services it specialises in
- Which markets and audiences it serves
- What differentiates it from competitors
- Why the organisation should be considered authoritative
- Which independent sources validate its expertise
Discovery is happening beyond Google
The shift is broader than Google Search.
ChatGPT can search the live web and return answers supported by links and citations. Buyers can therefore research categories, compare providers and shortlist companies without beginning their journey in a conventional search engine.
Similar research behaviour is developing across platforms such as Gemini, Claude and Perplexity.
Brands therefore need to understand not only how they rank in Google, but how they are represented across the wider AI discovery ecosystem.
The opportunity is still early
Many organisations are still primarily measuring digital discovery through traditional rankings, website traffic and paid search.
That creates an opportunity for businesses that start measuring and improving AI visibility now.
The brands that build stronger category associations, trusted third-party references and clearer authority signals may be better positioned to appear repeatedly in AI-generated buyer journeys.
What should marketing leaders do now?
The starting point is not simply to create more content. It is to understand your current position.
A useful AI visibility baseline should measure:
From there, organisations can identify which technical, content, source and positioning improvements are most likely to make a difference — then measure whether visibility actually moves.
