A new field of optimization is emerging as artificial intelligence changes the way people find information. We talked to Alex Bazooka, a Ukrainian SEO expert who is one of the first to use Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), and found out why it’s becoming the next big thing in digital marketing.
The search landscape is changing more than it has since Google first came out. Traditional SEO was all about getting your site to show up in the top 10 blue links. Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), on the other hand, focuses on the AI-powered answer boxes, chatbots, and voice assistants that are becoming the first—and often last—place people go to find information.
Alex Bazooka, the innovative mind behind groundbreaking experiments like his 1034% traffic increase using ChatGPT for SEO and his revealing analysis proving that ChatGPT Plus secretly uses Google-powered results, has been at the forefront of this evolution.
In this exclusive interview, Bazooka talks about why AEO is a big change, which startups are leading the way, and how marketers can get ready for the future of AI.
The Interview: 10 Essential Questions About Answer Engine Optimization
1. Alex, let’s start with the basics. How would you define AEO and why should marketers care about it right now?
Alex Bazooka: “Look, we’re witnessing the biggest shift in search behavior since mobile-first indexing. AEO—Answer Engine Optimization—is fundamentally about optimizing content for AI systems that provide direct answers rather than just links.
Think about it: when someone asks ChatGPT, Claude, or Perplexity a question, they’re not looking to click through to ten different websites. They want the answer, right now, synthesized and actionable. Traditional SEO optimized for discoverability; AEO optimizes for being the authoritative source that AI engines cite and reference.
My experiments have shown this isn’t theoretical—it’s happening. When I demonstrated that ChatGPT Plus actually pulls from Google’s index, it confirmed that the lines between traditional search and AI answer engines are already blurred. Marketers who ignore this are essentially optimizing for yesterday’s internet.”
2. You’ve conducted fascinating experiments showing connections between ChatGPT and Google. What did these reveal about the current AEO landscape?
Alex Bazooka: “The ChatGPT Plus experiment was a game-changer for understanding how AI systems actually work behind the scenes. I proved that ChatGPT Plus wasn’t just relying on training data—it was actively pulling fresh information from Google’s search results.
This revealed something crucial: the same content optimization principles that make you visible to Google’s crawlers also make you visible to AI systems. But here’s the kicker—AI engines don’t just want to find your content; they want to understand it, synthesize it, and present it authoritatively.
The 1034% traffic increase experiment showed the flip side: using AI to create better, more comprehensive content that both humans and algorithms love. It’s not about gaming the system—it’s about creating content so valuable that AI systems can’t help but reference it.”
3. Which startups and companies are currently leading the AEO revolution?
Alex Bazooka: “We’re seeing innovation across multiple vectors. Perplexity AI is probably the purest example of an answer engine—they’re not trying to be Google 2.0, they’re building something entirely different. Their citation model and real-time web browsing capabilities make them incredibly important for AEO strategies.
Then you have companies like You.com and Neeva (before their pivot) that tried to reimagine search entirely. But honestly? The most interesting developments are happening with smaller, specialized tools.
Startups like Consensus for academic research, Elicit for scientific queries, and even niche players building AI assistants for specific industries—these are where AEO strategies need to be tested and refined. They’re more experimental, more willing to try new citation and attribution models.
The key insight is that AEO isn’t about optimizing for one platform—it’s about understanding how different AI systems consume, process, and present information.”
4. How does content creation differ when optimizing for answer engines versus traditional search engines?
“This is where most marketers are going wrong,” says Alex Bazooka. They are still thinking about backlinks and keywords when they should be thinking about knowledge graphs and entity relationships.
If you want to do traditional SEO, you could write a 2,000-word guide about “best project management software” and make sure that phrase is the most important one. You need to think like a reference library for AEO. Your content needs to answer not only the main question but also any other questions that an AI might need to give a full answer.
Structure becomes very important. AI systems like information that is organized in a clear way, like headings, bullet points, numbered lists, and data tables. But they need context even more. You can’t just say “Asana is great for teams.” You need to say why, give examples of how to use it, include relevant metrics, and relate it to bigger ideas.
I’ve started using what I call “AI-ready content architecture.” This means writing in a way that makes it easy for an AI system to read, understand, and reference the information. “It’s more like an encyclopedia and more connected.”
5. What role do traditional SEO factors like backlinks and domain authority play in AEO?
Alex Bazooka: “They still matter, but they work in a different way. In the past, a high-authority backlink from a major publication could help your rankings right away. In AEO, the same link shows that you can be trusted and helps AI systems decide if your information is good enough to use.
Domain authority is still important, but topical authority is more so now. An AI system is more likely to link to a specialized industry blog that shows a lot of expertise than to a general news site that only covers the same topic in a shallow way.
It’s interesting that AI systems seem to put different amounts of weight on how recent something is. If a newer, better-sourced article from a smaller site has more up-to-date, useful information, it might be cited more than an older article from a big publication.
The connections are more important than the raw link power. AI systems pay attention to your content if it is consistently cited alongside other authoritative sources and fills in gaps in knowledge that other sources don’t.
6. How should businesses measure success in AEO campaigns?
Alex Bazooka: “Traditional metrics like organic traffic and keyword rankings only tell part of the story in AEO.” We need to keep an eye on what I call “citation visibility,” which is how often AI systems use your content.
I keep an eye on a few important numbers: how often your information is cited by AI on different platforms, how accurately the information is being presented, and whether you’re being cited as a main source or just extra information.
Brand mention tracking is very important because AI systems often talk about things without using traditional links. You might not get the click, but you do get the authority and exposure for your brand.
I also keep track of what I call the “knowledge completion rate,” which is how well your content answers related questions. Your content isn’t AEO-optimized enough if users keep having to ask follow-up questions.
Attributing revenue is hard but important. You need to keep an eye on how AI citations affect brand searches, direct traffic, and, in the end, conversions. It’s a funnel that takes longer and is more complicated than regular SEO.”
7. What are the biggest misconceptions about AEO that you encounter?
Alex Bazooka: “The biggest one is that AEO is just ‘SEO for AI chatbots.’ That completely misses the point. AEO requires rethinking how information is structured, presented, and interconnected.
Another misconception is that you can just feed your existing content to AI tools and call it AEO-optimized. That’s like thinking you can optimize for mobile by just shrinking your desktop site.
I also see people obsessing over optimizing specifically for ChatGPT or Claude, when they should be thinking about the underlying principles that make content AI-friendly across platforms. The platforms will change; the fundamental need for clear, authoritative, well-structured information won’t.
The most dangerous misconception is that traditional SEO is dead. It’s not. AEO builds on SEO foundations—you still need technical optimization, you still need quality content, and you still need authority signals. AEO is an evolution, not a replacement.”
8. How do you see voice search and smart speakers fitting into the AEO ecosystem?
Alex Bazooka: “Voice search is actually the purest form of AEO because there’s only one answer. When someone asks Alexa about the weather, there’s no position 2 or 3—you either get cited or you don’t.
Smart speakers have taught us that conversational queries require different optimization approaches. People don’t ask Alexa ‘best pizza restaurant Chicago’—they ask ‘where should I get pizza tonight?’ The intent is the same, but the language is completely different.
This conversational element is spreading to all AI interactions. Text-based AI assistants are handling increasingly complex, multi-part queries that sound more like conversations than searches. Your content needs to anticipate these natural language patterns.
The opportunity is enormous because voice search users often take immediate action. If your business gets cited as the answer to a voice query, the conversion potential is incredibly high.”
9. What specific strategies would you recommend for a business starting their AEO journey today?
Alex Bazooka: “Start with a content audit focused on question-answering potential. Look at your existing content and ask: ‘If an AI system wanted to provide a comprehensive answer about this topic, would it cite my content?’
Make what I call “definitive resource content“—pieces that are so well-organized and detailed that AI systems always use them. This means that the coverage is complete, the structure is clear, the publication dates are recent, and the sources are well cited.
Use structured data in a strong way. Schema markup is no longer just for search engines; it also helps AI systems understand and organize your content. AEO really needs FAQ schema, How-to schema, and Article schema.
Build topical authority clusters. Instead of random blog posts, create interconnected content networks around specific topics. When AI systems need information about your area of expertise, they should find multiple high-quality pieces that reinforce your authority.
Most importantly, start monitoring AI citations. Set up alerts for your brand and key terms across major AI platforms. Understanding how you’re currently being referenced is the foundation for optimization.”
10. Looking ahead, how do you predict the AEO landscape will evolve over the next few years?
Alex Bazooka: “We’re entering what I call the ‘AI intermediary era.'” More and more, users won’t interact directly with websites—they’ll interact with AI systems that synthesize information from multiple sources.
This era brings both problems and chances. The problem is that you might get less traffic directly. The chance is that being consistently cited by AI systems gives your brand a lot of authority and brings in high-intent traffic when people are keen to learn more.
I think we’ll see the rise of specialized AEO tools—platforms made just for helping marketers get the most out of AI citation. AI systems will also get better at figuring out where information comes from and may even come up with new ways to get people to go back to the original sources.
The companies that do well will be the ones that give AI systems useful information while also keeping strong direct connections with their customers. It’s not about picking between AEO and traditional marketing; it’s about making a plan that works at all touchpoints.
Brands that become essential sources of information in their fields will own the future. “Not just findable, but necessary.”
Key Takeaways: The AEO Revolution
As our conversation with Alex Bazooka reveals, Answer Engine Optimization represents more than just another marketing tactic—it’s a fundamental shift in how information flows between creators and consumers.
The bottom line: AEO isn’t replacing SEO; it’s expanding it into new territories where authority, clarity, and comprehensiveness matter more than traditional ranking factors.
For marketers ready to embrace this evolution, the opportunity is significant. Early adopters who master AEO principles will establish themselves as authoritative sources in an increasingly AI-mediated world.
The question isn’t whether AEO will become mainstream—it’s whether your brand will be ready when it does.
Want to learn more about Alex Bazooka’s innovative SEO experiments? Check out his www.seo-bazooka.com research on increasing traffic 1034% with ChatGPT and his investigation into ChatGPT Plus’s Google connections.
About the Expert: Alex Bazooka is a Ukrainian SEO strategist and digital marketing innovator known for his experimental approach to understanding search engine and AI system behaviors. His research has been featured across major industry publications and has influenced AEO strategies worldwide.
Also Read: Why SEO is Critical for B2B Companies: Key Trends to Watch in 2025
