GEO (generative engine optimization) is the practice of making content more likely to appear in answers from generative AI systems such as ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini or Google’s AI Overviews. The goal is for an AI answer to mention a brand or cite a page as a source. In this sense GEO has nothing to do with geolocation or geographic targeting.
At a glance
- Type
- umbrella term for work on visibility in AI answers
- Affects
- answers from generative search systems such as ChatGPT, Perplexity or AI Overviews
- Visible?
- for Google, impressions in the Search Console generative AI performance report (since Aug 31, 2026)
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Where does the term come from?
The term was introduced in a research paper by Pranjal Aggarwal and five co-authors, first posted to arXiv on November 16, 2023 and presented at KDD 2024. The authors built a benchmark of queries (GEO-bench) and tested how rewriting source content changed its visibility in generated answers. Some methods raised visibility by up to 40% in their setup, and the effect differed by subject area.
Since then the label has spread through agencies and tool vendors, along with related acronyms such as AEO (answer engine optimization) and LLMO (large language model optimization). Their meanings overlap, and nobody owns the definitions.
How does GEO relate to SEO?
Many AI search systems retrieve web pages at the moment they answer a question. A page that a crawler cannot reach, render or read is not available as a source. Technical SEO therefore stays a precondition.
For its own products, Google takes a clear position. Its guide on generative AI features says that optimizing for them “is optimizing for the search experience, and thus still SEO.” Pages need to be indexed and eligible for a snippet. Google also states that no special files, AI text files, Markdown versions or schema markup are required to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode.
Other providers run their own crawlers. OpenAI, for example, uses OAI-SearchBot for ChatGPT search and documents that sites blocking it will not be shown in ChatGPT search answers. Robots.txt rules for these bots are part of GEO work.
Measurement is where GEO differs most. SEO tracks rankings, clicks and impressions. GEO looks at how often a brand is named across a set of prompts, which URLs are cited, and how the brand is described. Google Search Console has offered a Generative AI performance report since 2026. It shows impressions of links to a site in AI Overviews and AI Mode, without clicks or queries.
| Term | Full form | Goal | Metric | Origin of the term |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SEO | Search engine optimization | Help search engines understand content and help users find a site through search | Clicks, impressions, CTR and average position in the Search Console performance report | no clear first source; Google uses the term in its own documentation |
| GEO (this term) | Generative engine optimization | Increase the visibility of content in responses from generative search systems | in the research paper “Position-Adjusted Word Count” and “Subjective Impression”; for Google Search, impressions in the generative AI features performance report (since 2026-08-31) | Aggarwal et al., “GEO: Generative Engine Optimization”, arXiv:2311.09735 (2023-11-16), KDD 2024 |
| AEO | Answer engine optimization | Appear as a direct answer or source in answer systems (industry usage, no standard) | no defined metric | no clear first source |
| AI SEO | – | Umbrella term for SEO in AI-powered search, sometimes also for using AI tools in SEO work (industry usage) | no defined metric | no clear first source |
| LLMO / LLM SEO | Large language model optimization | Be mentioned in answers from large language models (industry usage, often used interchangeably with GEO) | no defined metric | no clear first source |
The table describes terms and does not rate methods. For AI Overviews and AI Mode, Google names no requirements beyond the basics of Search. The terms GEO, AEO and LLMO do not appear in Google's documentation on AI features. Goals without a primary source reflect industry usage. Sources: Aggarwal, P. et al.: GEO: Generative Engine Optimization. arXiv:2311.09735 (2023), KDD 2024; Google Search Central: SEO-Startleitfaden / SEO Starter Guide; Search-Console-Hilfe: Leistungsbericht (Suche) / Performance report (Search); Search-Console-Hilfe: Leistungsbericht zu generativen KI-Funktionen (Google Suche); Google Search Central: KI-Funktionen und deine Website / AI features and your website. Last checked: .
Example
A maker of standing desks asks ChatGPT and Perplexity “Which standing desk is stable at full height for a 6’5” person?” Both answers name three competitors. A review shows that the product page lists no height range or load limit, and that the site’s robots.txt blocks OAI-SearchBot. The team publishes the specs in plain text and unblocks the search crawler, then repeats the same prompts monthly to see whether mentions change.
FAQ
Is GEO replacing SEO? Not for Google. Google describes its AI features as built on its core ranking systems and calls optimizing for them SEO. For other AI systems, crawler access and content quality still decide what can be cited.
Is GEO legitimate or hype? The term has an academic origin, but the field is young. Many percentages in vendor guides lack a source. Reliable inputs are provider documentation and your own measurements over time.
What is the difference between GEO and AEO? Both describe optimizing for AI-generated answers. According to reports, AEO grew out of featured snippets and voice assistants. GEO comes from the 2023 research on generative search. In practice they are often used interchangeably.
More on the searchVIU blog
Sources
- Aggarwal, P. et al.: GEO: Generative Engine Optimization. arXiv:2311.09735 (submitted 2023-11-16), KDD 2024arxiv.org
- Google's guide to optimizing for generative AI features on Google Search – Google Search Central (updated 2026-07-10)developers.google.com
- AI features and your website – Google Search Centraldevelopers.google.com
- Generative AI performance report – Search Console Helpsupport.google.com
- Overview of OpenAI Crawlers – OpenAIdevelopers.openai.com
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