SEO isn’t dead. It’s just finally interesting… again.
A few months ago, someone I respect sent me a message that read:
“Are we still doing SEO, or are we just feeding the AI now?”
I
laughed. But it stuck with me.
Because in the age of AI search, especially with the rise of Google’s AI Overviews, ChatGPT’s web access, Perplexity, and a dozen other “answer engines,” that’s exactly how SEO feels right now: weirdly existential.
And yet, I’ve never been more excited about SEO.
I remember the old game
Six or seven years ago, SEO felt like a spreadsheet sport. You’d find the gaps. Plug in keywords. Create a decent article. Build a few links. Wait. Win.
There was creativity, sure, especially with content.
But so much of it was mechanical. A formula. That’s why it became commodified. Everyone figured out the same moves. Agencies churned. Writers burned out. Audits blended together.
Then came AI.
Not just AI content, I mean AI search.
Now, suddenly, Google doesn’t just point users to our pages. It answers them directly. Sometimes correctly. Sometimes not.
But either way, it’s a new layer between the user and our content.
And honestly? That should terrify anyone still playing the old game.
AI is exposing lazy SEO
You can’t just rank with a recycled listicle anymore.
You can’t string together fluff and call it “topical authority.”
And you definitely can’t get away with 1,000 words of filler when a machine gives the user an answer in 10 seconds.
That’s not a bad thing. It’s a reset.
AI is forcing SEOs to get specific again. To say something real. To write like a person who knows what they’re talking about, not a placeholder waiting to be replaced.
Because here’s what I’m seeing:
when AI overviews pull from web content, they don’t quote the best-optimized post. They quote the clearest, most helpful thing. A specific sentence. A definition that makes sense. A stat with real context. A page structured so well, the AI doesn’t have to guess what it’s about.
We’re not optimising for a page anymore. We’re optimising for fragments.
The new SEO is entity-based, not keyword-based
I used to think of a site in terms of keywords. Now I think in entities.
Not just: “What terms are we targeting?”
But: “What presence are we building?”
Because Gemini, ChatGPT, Perplexity — they don’t just look at a page. They look at your brand across the web.
They pull from your about page, your product docs, your social mentions, your backlinks, even your glossary terms. They build a picture of who you are.
If you’re trying to rank for “B2B payments automation,” you’re not just competing with other articles.
You’re competing with entire companies who’ve published 10 blog posts, 3 case studies, a product comparison, a partner directory, and a glossary.
That’s what AI is seeing. That’s what’s feeding the machine.
So SEO, right now, is less about “ranking for a keyword” and more about “owning the concept.”
AI tools make SEO better, not worse — if you know how to use them
There’s a version of AI SEO that’s lazy and obvious:
Spit out 50 articles with a generic prompt.
Post them all in one week.
Wait for traffic that never comes.
But there’s another version — one I’m obsessed with — where AI becomes a thinking partner. It helps you:
Analyse SERPs for intent patterns
Draft variants for featured snippets
Brainstorm use case angles your competitors missed
Cluster entities semantically instead of just by volume
Simulate how your site appears to an AI answer engine
That’s real SEO.
Not “prompt and publish.” But prompt, refine, research, write, test, improve
AI is a mirror. If your thinking is shallow, your content will be too.
So what’s working in SEO right now?
This is what I’m seeing succeed across projects:
Building defensible, link-worthy assets: tools, directories, glossaries — things AI sees as source material
Owning your brand entity: consistent naming, detailed about pages, product coverage across the web
Creating “AI-readable” content: bullet points, concise definitions, semantic structure
Tapping into overlooked distribution: AI crawlers aren’t limited to Google — they pull from Reddit, YouTube, LinkedIn, docs. Your influence matters.
Tracking how your brand is cited: not just backlinks, but references in answers
SEO is now part reputation management, part content strategy, part entity control.
It’s a bigger game — but it’s a fairer one. If you say useful, original things, you win.