SEO is evolving fast with AI-powered search. Traditional SEO tactics alone won’t cut it anymore. Brands now need to optimize for AI search features like Google’s expanding AI Overviews, ChatGPT, and other generative platforms.
Google just announced AI Overviews are rolling out to over 200 countries and 40+ languages by May 2025. AI Mode is already live for all US users with no opt-in needed. Tracking visibility in these AI results is critical.
Tools like Semrush and ZipTie.dev help identify which queries trigger AI Overviews and if your site shows up there. Marketers are advised to track these AI-specific queries closely and adjust content strategies accordingly. 
Brand mentions in AI chatbots like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google’s AI Mode matter now more than ever. Platforms like Ahrefs Brand Radar and Mention.com track how often your brand appears in AI-powered responses. Being cited by AI engines can boost your brand’s AI authority and visibility.
Ahrefs also launched a free tool that tracks how often websites are cited in AI-powered answers. This shows if AI tools use your content as a source—crucial for measuring SEO effectiveness in the AI era.
Google Search Console now reports AI Mode data including clicks, impressions, and positions. GA4 can help track AI traffic sources using custom filters for domains like ChatGPT or Perplexity. Ahrefs found AI search visitors convert 23x higher than typical organic visitors, highlighting AI’s conversion potential.
The SEO focus has shifted from just ranking on Google’s SERPs to being visible and relevant across multiple AI search platforms. OpenAI’s rumored AI-powered web browser could shake things up and challenge Google Chrome’s dominance, threatening Google’s ad revenue sources.
Brands that prove their SEO value through AI-specific metrics—AI Overviews, brand mentions, AI citations, and AI-mode traffic—can unlock bigger marketing budgets and stay competitive.
AI Mode groups the user’s question into subtopics and searches for each one simultaneously, and users can go deeper.
If a user asks a follow-up question within AI Mode, they are essentially performing a new query. All impression, position, and click data in the new response are counted as coming from this new user query.
Google’s AI Overview expansion: Google Blog
OpenAI AI browser challenge: Reuters
Ahrefs AI search traffic conversion data: Ahrefs Blog
