// Field_Notes // AI Search

    AI Search

    How AI search surfaces (AI Mode, AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity) rank and cite content — and how to be the source they pick.

    AI Search7 min read

    Google AI Mode goes default: what the July 2026 rollout means for organic traffic

    Google flipped AI Mode from opt-in to default for US logged-in users. Here is what changed in the SERP, what we are seeing in client GSC data, and the four moves that protect click share this quarter.

    Jul 2026Read →
    AI Search11

    AI Overviews are eating 40% of clicks — the 2026 defense playbook

    AI Overviews now appear on the majority of commercial queries. Here's the exact triage framework we use to defend traffic — and reclaim citations — without gutting SEO budgets.

    Jul 2026Read →
    AI Search11 min

    How to Get Cited in Google AI Mode: The 2026 Playbook

    Google AI Mode runs on Gemini 3.5 Flash and serves a billion users a month. Citations inside the AI answer compound across follow-up turns. Here is the 6-pillar playbook we run for ecommerce clients — with retrieval traces, schema templates, and timing benchmarks from our 4.2TB audit corpus.

    May 2026Read →
    AI Search9 min

    ChatGPT Search vs Google AI Mode: Where Ecommerce Brands Should Show Up First

    ChatGPT Search and Google AI Mode pull from overlapping but distinct citation pools. ChatGPT favors editorial authority and Reddit; AI Mode favors structured ecommerce data and the Knowledge Graph. For ecommerce brands, the engines reward different things — here is what we have measured across 187 brand audits.

    May 2026Read →
    AI Search12 min

    Google's I/O 2026 Search Update: Why SEO Is More Important Than Ever (Not Less)

    Google just rebuilt Search with Gemini 3.5 Flash, agents, and generative UI. The "SEO is dead" takes are wrong — here's the operator's view of what actually shipped and the new playbook to stay cited in AI Mode and AI Overviews.

    May 2026Read →