On this page
Four names, one goal
- SEO. Search engine optimisation: being on Google's first page for the searches that bring you customers.
- GEO. Generative engine optimisation: being named when someone asks an AI tool which business to choose.
- AEO. Answer engine optimisation: an older name for much the same thing, from the days of featured snippets and voice search.
- AI SEO. Whatever the agency using it means. Ask.
What Google said in 2026
In May 2026 Google published a guide to its AI features in Search. Its main point is that optimising for AI search is still SEO. AI Overviews and AI Mode find pages through Google's normal ranking systems, then summarise them, often after running several related searches at once.
The guide also lists things it calls myths:
- Special AI files. Google Search ignores llms.txt and similar files. They neither help nor hurt in Google.
- Chopping pages into small pieces. Google's systems can find the right part of a long page on their own.
- Writing for AI. Google says you do not need to write in a special way. Its systems understand synonyms and meaning.
- Chasing mentions. In Google's words, seeking inauthentic mentions across the web is not as helpful as it might seem.
- Special structured data. No schema markup is required for AI features, though it still helps with ordinary search features.
What Google says matters most is "non-commodity" content: something useful that is not already on every other site, ideally from first-hand experience.
Sources: Google: Optimizing your website for generative AI features on Google Search (May 2026); Google: AI features and your website.
Where GEO still needs its own attention
If it is mostly SEO, why name GEO at all? Because a few things matter more when an AI tool writes the answer than when Google shows ten links.
- Facts that agree everywhere. An AI tool that finds two versions of a fact picks one. Medha's site once said readings were both live and recorded, and the AI Overview said she did not read live. One consistent sentence fixed it.
- Other AI tools. ChatGPT, Perplexity and Copilot use their own crawlers, and Copilot leans on Bing's index. We check those crawlers can read your site and that Bing has it.
- Checking the answers. Search Console now reports how often your pages appear in Google's AI features. For other tools, we ask the questions your customers ask and record what comes back, every week.
How to judge a GEO or AEO service
In June 2026 Google warned site owners about services that promise improvements in AI search, which it called AEO or GEO tools, and about any tool claiming access to Google's own data. No outside tool can see how Google ranks. A good GEO service shows you its work in Google's own Search Console and does not sell you a score.
Our buyer's guide on how to choose an SEO agency in Mumbai lists the questions to ask.
Source: Google: Third-party SEO tools, services, and advice (June 2026).
Questions people ask
Is GEO replacing SEO?
No. Google says its AI features rest on the same ranking systems as ordinary search, so SEO is the ground GEO stands on.
Do I need an llms.txt file?
Not for Google, which says it ignores the file. Some other AI tools may read it, so we add one where it is cheap, but we never sell it as a way into Google's AI answers.
Can I see if my site appears in Google's AI Overviews?
Yes. Search Console has a report for Google's AI features, available for every site since August 2026. It shows how often your pages appeared, by page, country and device, though not the searches themselves.
Does structured data help with AI answers?
Google says no special markup is needed for its AI features. Structured data still helps Google understand your pages and qualify for some search features, so we use it where it fits.