Does AI Actually Rank Content?

Written By Cien Solon

Does AI Actually Rank Content?

Traditional SEO relied on clear ranking signals through keywords, backlinks, and technical tweaks. But AI-driven search engines don’t rank results in blue links anymore, rather, they generate answers. Instead of listing pages in order, AI models pull from structured data, authoritative citations, and entity relationships to generate responses.

They generate definitive answers.

If AI doesn’t recognise your brand as a credible source, you’re invisible. Google doesn’t care about your keywords anymore. Neither do AI search engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google’s own Search Generative Experience (SGE).

As of 2025, 34% of Google searches now feature AI-generated overviews*. That number is only going up. Businesses that fail to optimise for AI-driven search will disappear from discovery.

The answer lies in entities, but what are entities anyway?

Entities are the building blocks of AI search. This includes people, organisations, concepts, places, and things that AI understands and connects to relevant information. Unlike keywords, entities carry meaning, helping AI models form relationships between concepts.

Example: Instead of ranking pages for the phrase “best marketing strategies,” AI models look for trusted sources that consistently provide authoritative insights on marketing strategy.**

AI models like GPT-4 and Google’s AI don’t just scan for keywords. They:

  • Map relationships between recognised entities

  • Identify authoritative sources that are frequently cited

  • Prioritise structured data over unstructured, unverified content

According to NoGood’s Entity SEO Guide ***, AI-powered search favours structured, contextual data over keyword-heavy content. If AI models don’t classify you as a trusted entity, your content won’t surface, no matter how well-optimised it is.

How to Get AI to Recognise & Rank You as an Entity

Step 1: Get Listed in Google’s Knowledge Graph

Google’s Knowledge Graph is its internal database of verified entities such as businesses, experts, and concepts that AI search trusts. If your brand isn’t in the Knowledge Graph, Google doesn’t officially recognise you as an entity. That makes it significantly harder to appear in AI-powered search results.

How to Get Into Google’s Knowledge Graph:

  • Create a Wikipedia or Wikidata page (or get cited on them)

  • Get featured in high-authority news sources (Forbes, TechCrunch, industry blogs)

  • Optimise your Google My Business profile.

If your brand is consistently mentioned across trusted sources, Google is more likely to classify you as an entity**.

Step 2: Use Schema Markup to Feed AI Structured Data

AI prioritises structured data over free-text content. Schema markup helps AI understand exactly what your content is about.

Types of Schema That Matter:

  • Person schema → For individuals, thought leaders, and public figures

  • Organization schema → For businesses, making them recognisable in AI search

  • Product schema → Helps AI understand and reference your products

What to do:

  • Use Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper to generate schema

  • Implement schema markup on About pages, services, and product pages

  • Validate structured data using Google’s Rich Results Test

NoGood’s guide emphasises that proper entity linking within schema markup improves AI recognition. A tech company, for example, can use @id properties in schema markup to explicitly link their CEO, products, and organisation together, improving search rankings***.

Step 3: Build AI-Recognised Authority with High-Trust Citations

AI models trust content from authoritative sources like news sites, academic papers, and reference platforms like Wikipedia.

How to Build Authority for AI Search:

  • Get featured in industry reports, whitepapers, or expert roundups

  • Publish on high-authority media outlets (Forbes, Harvard Business Review, TechCrunch)

  • Engage with Reddit, Quora and LinkedIn, platforms that AI search engines frequently scrape and cite.\

If AI sees your name, brand, or website consistently cited in trusted spaces, it begins treating you as an entity worth surfacing. Google’s SGE, DeepSeek, and Perplexity use citation frequency to determine credibility. Meanwhile, models like Claude, which lack real-time web search, prioritise structured knowledge sources like Wikipedia and academic papers.

Future-Proofing Your SEO for AI Search

Google’s AI-powered SGE is expanding rapidly, integrating AI-generated summaries into search results. Within the next 12-24 months, AI-first discovery will dominate information retrieval. That means:

  • Ranking #1 on Google won’t matter as much, LLMs will choose one answer to display

  • AI assistants will make buying decisions for users, bypassing traditional search entirely

  • Only verified entities with structured, AI-friendly content will get visibility

What You Need to Do Now:

  • Understand how different AI models retrieve information

  • Optimise for real-time search engines like DeepSeek and Perplexity

  • Prioritise high-trust citations that AI search engines rely on

  • Make your brand an entity, not just a website

The Future of SEO Is Entity Optimisation

The winners will be those who understand how AI prioritises structured, authoritative data. While AI-driven search is changing ranking dynamics, foundational SEO principles like high-quality content, user experience, and authoritative backlinks seem like will still matter.


The old game was hacking search algorithms.

The new game is training AI models to recognise and recommend you.

If you’re not adapting to this shift, you’re already behind.



Citations:

  • *How to Optimise Your Website and Content to Rank in AI Search Results. Xponent21.

  • **When and How to Use Knowledge Graphs and Entities for SEO. Search Engine Land.

  • ***Entity SEO: A Definitive Guide to Boost Your Rankings. NoGood.


Cien Solon
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