"Generative engine optimization: SEO was a popularity contest. GEO is an intelligence test." - Futurist Jim Carroll
We are moving from SEO to GEO, and it's happening incredibly fast!
**Maria Franzoni** had a post about that yesterday - just as the very moment I was optimizing my website for the AI got!
GEO? What's that? Rebuilding our websites so they feed the AI machine better, improving our chances of showing up in ChatGPT and other AI search results!
With this, I've turned off the minimal Google Ads I've been running and put in place the code to let "the AI machines" fully into my site.
They noticed right away! Visits began to explode.
All of this got me thinking in terms of spans of time. If 2015 was about Search Engine Optimisation. 2026 is about Generative Engine Optimisation.
How does it work? In simple terms, my site is now configured to do a different thing when an AI 'bot' appears, seeking to index my content.
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"Are you a search engine?
Yes"
An AI bot?
Yes.
Oh, ok, here's a version of the content for this page, all nicely organized in the format you like so you can ingest it into your AI!"
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One thing most folks might ask at this point - isn't this my content? Do I want to feed it to AI? Shouldn't I tell them no? For a time, I did. Then, two weeks ago, I confirmed two speaking gigs that came directly to me from ChatGPT.
That woke me up! I decided to move fast.
Here's what I did.
(Keep reading!)
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**#GEO** **#SEO** **#AI** **#FutureOfSearch** **#DigitalStrategy** **#Innovation** **#Marketing** **#Technology** **#ChatGPT** **#Optimization** **#WebStrategy** **#Adaptation** **#ArtificialIntelligence** **#ContentStrategy** **#Disruption** **#Change** **#Evolution** **#Digital** **#Visibility** **#Strategy** **#Transformation** **#Speed** **#Relevance** **#Intelligence** **#Onwards**
Original post: https://jimcarroll.com/2026/01/decoding-tomorrow-daily-inspiration-from-seo-to-geo-generative-engine-optimization-seo-was-a-popularity-contest-geo-is-an-intelligence-test/