Google settled the AEO and GEO debate. It is all still SEO.
No opinions, no hacks, no hype. This page explains the fundamentals using only what Google publishes in its own guides, in plain language, with a link to every source so you can read it for yourself.
Eight official Google Search Central pages, linked below.
The question everyone is asking
Is SEO still relevant for AI search?
Google’s answer is short. Yes. The AI answers you see at the top of the results are built on the same core Search ranking systems Google has always used, and they pull from the same Search index.
That is why Google’s position on the new acronyms is so direct. In its own guide, optimizing for generative AI search is treated as optimizing for the search experience, and so it is still SEO. The work did not change. Only the surface it shows up on did.
Source: Google, Optimizing for AI featuresGrounding
The AI fetches real pages that already rank, then writes its answer from them.
Query fan-out
One question quietly becomes several related searches behind the scenes.
The takeaway
If your page is not indexed and not trusted, there is nothing for the AI to pull.
What Google rewards
Content made for people, not for the algorithm
Google says useful content influences how you show up more than any other single thing. The kind it points to is non-commodity content, meaning work that only you could write because you actually do it. A first-hand account of a tricky sewer line repair beats a generic list of tips that anyone, or any AI, could produce. It frames the self-check as three questions.
Who made this?
Is it clear to the reader who is behind the page, and why they are worth listening to?
How was it made?
Including an honest note when AI helped, instead of passing generated work off as first-hand.
Why does it exist?
To help a real person make a decision, rather than to chase rankings for their own sake.
You may have heard of E-E-A-T: experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trust. Google says trust is the most important of the four, and that E-E-A-T is not itself a ranking factor. Treat it as a way to judge your own work, not a dial to turn.
Source: Helpful, people-first contentWhat you can ignore
Google’s own list of things you do not need
Most of the “AI optimization” advice for sale is on this list. These come straight from Google’s AI guide and its SEO starter guide.
- An llms.txt or special AI file Google gives these no special treatment.
- Chunking content into tiny pieces Google reads multiple topics on one page fine.
- Rewriting everything in an AI voice Its systems understand synonyms and meaning.
- Chasing fake mentions across the web Core ranking rewards quality, spam systems catch the rest.
- Treating structured data as required Not needed for AI. Still useful for rich results.
- The meta keywords tag Google Search does not use it.
- Keyword stuffing It is against Google’s spam policies.
- Hitting a magic word count Google has no preferred length, minimum or maximum.
How to judge any advice, including ours
A simple test before you pay anyone
Google gives one clean rule for weighing SEO advice. Good advice either calls itself an opinion based on data or experience, or it backs its claims by citing official Google guidance.
So when a vendor says “Google says,” ask them to show you where. If they cannot, you have your answer.
Google states this directly
- Google does not endorse or evaluate third-party SEO tools.
- No outside tool has access to Google’s internal ranking data, and none can guarantee a result. Any prediction they make is their own.
- Appearing in Google results does not cost money, no matter what anyone tells you.
- The one tool worth trusting is free and first-party: Google Search Console, because the data comes straight from Search.
Read it straight from Google
Skip the middleman. Go to the source.
Eight official pages from Google Search Central. Click any of them and judge the advice for yourself.
We build to this checklist, not to whatever is trending.
Want a second set of eyes on your site? We will check it against Google's own fundamentals and show you what to fix first. Free, and no sign-up to see it.
- Spanish written, not translated
- 48-hour starter turnaround
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- Spanish written, not translated
- 48-hour starter turnaround
- Founder-built in Salinas
- Every number sourced
- Sub-2-second loads
- Owned by you, hosted by us
- Built around your booked job
- One playbook, every city