How AI Search Engines Like Google SGE and ChatGPT Are Reshaping SEO

If you’ve been working hard to climb Google’s rankings, only to find that traffic isn’t growing the way it used to, you’re not imagining things. AI search engines like Google SGE, ChatGPT with browsing, and Bing Copilot are changing how content is discovered, consumed, and trusted.

It’s not just about keywords anymore. Users are getting full answers directly in the search interface. That means fewer clicks, fewer visits to websites, and a growing reliance on content that appears inside AI-generated summaries.

At Inspire Digital, we’ve been watching this unfold and helping clients shift their strategies in real time. This blog will unpack how AI search works, how it differs from traditional SEO, and most importantly, what you can do today to prepare your content for this new kind of visibility.

Let’s explore the new world of AI-driven search and how your SEO strategy can evolve with it.

What Are AI Search Engines?

AI search engines are digital tools that use artificial intelligence to answer questions instead of listing links. 

Unlike traditional search engines that retrieve and display webpages based on keywords, AI search engines analyse vast datasets, summarise information, and deliver direct responses to users.

They rely on large language models (LLMs) to generate text, and some—like ChatGPT or Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE)—include citations from source content. Others, like Bing Copilot, integrate live web data to support their responses.

These platforms focus on clarity, factual accuracy, and relevance. Your content needs to be both high-quality and well-structured to be included.

What Makes AI Search Different from Traditional Search

Traditional search engines, like Google’s standard interface, are built on indexing. They scan websites, rank them using hundreds of signals, and display results users can click. 

Your SEO strategy has likely been built around this—optimise for keywords, win backlinks, and improve site speed.

AI search doesn’t behave the same way. 

Engines like Google SGE or ChatGPT don’t just index—they generate. They use large language models to pull content from across the web, summarise it, and present it to the user as an answer. That answer might cite your content, but it won’t always link to it.

This means visibility now includes two types:

• Visibility through rankings (SEO)
• Visibility through inclusion in AI responses (GEO)

Understanding how AI generates and displays this information is crucial for protecting your content’s reach.

Google Search Generative Experience (SGE)

SGE is Google’s experiment in using generative AI to enhance search. Instead of a list of links, users see an AI-generated summary with key points and recommendations. These are sourced from various websites but presented as one answer.

How it works:

• Summarises articles, videos, and webpages into snapshots
• Displays key points before organic listings
• Sometimes links to original sources
• Prioritises structured, fact-based content

Why this matters:

• Your top ranking might still sit below an AI-generated summary
• Users may never scroll to your listing
• Content that is clear, well-formatted, and factual is more likely to be included in the AI summary

What you can do:

• Optimise for clarity and structure (FAQs, bullet points, clean headings)
• Add schema markup (Article, FAQ, HowTo)
• Keep your most valuable content refreshed
• ChatGPT + Bing Copilot: Answer Engines with a Personality

ChatGPT and Bing Copilot represent a shift in how people interact with search. Instead of typing a question and browsing multiple links, users are engaging with tools that respond in full sentences, summarise insights, and even show sources directly in the answer.

ChatGPT with browsing allows the model to pull the latest information from the web. It’s especially useful for fast-changing topics like news, product updates, or recent studies. It answers in a natural, conversational way that feels personal—almost like messaging a knowledgeable friend.

Bing Copilot builds on Microsoft’s traditional search but layers in AI summaries, live data, and citations. It’s connected to search and browsing history, which makes it more context-aware. Users see snippets of content from credible sources, sometimes alongside a brief explanation or next-step suggestions.

These tools are now being integrated into desktop experiences, mobile browsers, and even enterprise software. That means your content has more entry points than ever—but only if it’s structured to be picked up.

Why this matters:

• These tools are shaping how users evaluate information, especially in time-sensitive or high-stakes decisions.
• They reward clarity, relevance, and timeliness—not just traditional authority.
• They surface answers without requiring clicks, so your content’s usefulness needs to come through even when the user never sees your site.

What to focus on:

• Write like you’re answering a direct question. Think clarity over cleverness.
• Ensure your brand is consistently named and associated with useful insights.
• Use internal linking to guide AI through related content and give it context.
• Structure answers into tidy formats: Q&As, numbered steps, short summaries.

Inspire Tip: Try asking ChatGPT or Copilot a question you want to rank for. See which answers get surfaced. Is your content mentioned? If not, check how the top-cited sources are written—and consider what your content might be missing.

Perplexity AI and You.com

Perplexity AI and You.com are two of the more experimental and innovative AI search platforms available today. They combine the speed of traditional search with the fluidity of AI-generated conversation, giving users fast answers that are easy to digest—and trust.

Perplexity AI is designed for transparency. Every response includes clickable citations, which means users can verify the source of each fact. This builds credibility quickly, making it an ideal platform for content that’s well-researched and clearly written.

You.com brings a more customised experience. It’s a hybrid between a search engine, productivity app, and AI assistant. Users can install mini-apps, tweak their experience, and get AI responses mixed with traditional search results. The platform prioritises user control, relevance, and succinctness.

Why these platforms matter:

• They appeal to a new generation of users who value quick, trustworthy answers over link lists.
• Brands can benefit from early exposure as these tools evolve and gain more traction.
• Being cited in a tool like Perplexity boosts your perceived authority—not just your traffic.

How to get featured:

• Keep your content factual and up to date. These tools reward fresh, trustworthy sources.
• Use subheadings that mirror common search queries.
• Break down your content into small, meaningful sections.
• Focus on intent. Ask: what specific question is this section answering?

Inspire Tip: Search your brand name and core service pages in both tools. Are you cited? Are your competitors? If you're missing from results, it’s time to simplify your content structure and make key facts stand out more clearly.

How AI Search Engines Choose and Cite Content

AI search engines don’t operate the same way traditional search engines do. Instead of scanning the internet for popularity signals like backlinks alone, they evaluate content through a different lens: clarity, structure, reliability, and topical focus.

These systems work best with content that’s cleanly presented and easy to break down into summaries or step-by-step guidance. They’re scanning for:

• Straightforward, jargon-free language
• Clearly labelled facts and definitions
• Helpful summaries at the top or bottom of a page
• A tight topical focus—pages that try to do too much are often ignored

What helps you get cited

To appear in AI-generated responses, your content must carry signals of credibility and structure:

• Schema markup: Applying structured data (like FAQ, Article, and Review schema) helps machines understand what each page offers.
• Titles and metadata: These should reflect real questions people are asking. AI tools favour intent-matching over clever copy.
• Author transparency: Having clear author names, bios, and contact information helps establish trust—both with readers and algorithms.
• Internal links and clean design: Logical linking between related pages shows topic expertise. A tidy layout also helps LLMs interpret what matters most on the page.

Why this matters

Unlike traditional SEO, you don’t always get a backlink when cited in AI tools. Sometimes, you only get a mention. That’s why structure and clarity matter more than ever—you’re writing for a system that needs to understand the answer at a glance.

Inspire Tip: Run your key service pages through a tool like ChatGPT or Bing Copilot. Are your facts being included? If not, review the structure and metadata. Chances are, your content needs a few tweaks to become more AI-readable.

How to Stay Visible in the Age of AI Search

At Inspire Digital, we’re helping brands evolve from being just “searchable” to being “citable” in the new AI-first ecosystem. Visibility now means more than landing on page one—it means being part of the answers users trust.

Here’s how to start aligning your content with how AI platforms search, summarise, and cite.

Combine SEO and GEO strategies

SEO remains important, but it’s no longer the only game in town. Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) complements traditional SEO by focusing on making content easier for AI tools to understand and use.

Make sure your website is fast and responsive on mobile. Structure your content using clear headings, bullet points, and Q&A-style formats that AI can easily extract from. Keep writing for people, but format for machines—because you now need both.

Monitor how your content appears in AI tools

Type in your most important queries on ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Bing Copilot. What shows up? Is your brand name mentioned? Are your key facts used?

If your competitors are showing up and you aren’t, study what they’re doing differently. Are they using cleaner structures? Fresher stats? More direct language? Use this to identify what content gaps you need to close.

Keep evergreen content alive

Evergreen content is still valuable, but only if it’s up to date. Review high-performing pages regularly—especially ones that drive conversions. Remove outdated references, update statistics, and improve clarity where needed. Adding schema markup and reformatting long paragraphs into digestible chunks can give old content new life.

Smart move for better visibility

We often recommend creating an internal “AI Visibility Checklist” for your team. Every time you publish or update a page, ask: Is this content clear? Can it be quoted? Is it backed by facts? Would I trust this answer if I read it in a chatbot?

Being visible in AI search is an ongoing process, not a one-time fix. But the sooner you start, the more likely you are to stay in front of your audience as search behaviour evolves.

Ready for What's Next in Search?

Clicks aren’t the only metric that matters anymore. In an AI-driven world, your content needs to show up in the answers—not just the results.

At Inspire Digital, we help businesses prepare for this shift with strategies designed to get you seen by both search engines and AI tools. We’re talking structured audits, smarter schema, and content that’s built to be referenced, not just ranked.

We don’t believe in guesswork. We work with you to shape content that earns trust, shows up in AI answers, and keeps your brand in the conversation.

Want to make your content visible in the new search landscape? Let’s get your GEO strategy started. Talk to Inspire Digital today.