Who Rules AI Search? What 3 Months of AI Visibility Data Tells Us

Oct 28, 2025 03:30 PM - 4 months ago 144598

After precocious launching AI Visibility Index, the definitive AI hunt study, we now person information for August, September, and October. 

This intends we've been capable to find deeper trends and way disruptions crossed ChatGPT and Google AI Mode, highlighting changes successful root diversity, marque visibility, and vertical-level volatility.

AI hunt is quickly evolving, but these observations, alongside the AI Visibility Index's downloadable blueprint, put you successful rod position for creating a winning strategy.

Some cardinal questions we’ll reply successful this analysis:

  • Is Reddit still ascendant arsenic a source?
  • Was location a ChatGPT algorithm alteration successful September?
  • Did Google’s removal of 100 results (num=100) per page impact AI hunt results?
  • How unchangeable are AI hunt rankings complete time?
  • How tin brands respond to these changes?

AI Mentions are Volatile and Differ by Model

Let's look astatine the wide trends pinch mentions first. 

ChatGPT saw a astir 12% summation successful the number of brands mentioned crossed successful September, earlier returning to a akin level successful October. This suggests experimentation and perchance attempts to diversify punctual responses.

By contrast, the number of brands mentioned dropped by 4% successful Google AI Mode from August to October, hinting that AI Mode has much defined controls connected the recommendations it makes. 

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For sources, ChatGPT saw an summation of astir 80% successful October. This indicates a basal displacement towards utilizing much sources, and a greater diverseness of sources, successful each response. 

Google AI Mode’s sources accrued by 13% betwixt August to October. This points to a similar, albeit lesser, shift.

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Models Shows a Clear Split successful Brand Diversity

ChatGPT offers a mixed picture, again demonstrating AI search’s unpredictable corrections. Most noteworthy:

  • Consumer Electronics had a ample jump, pinch complete 20% much unsocial brands mentioned
  • Technology & Software besides saw a 12% lift
  • YMYL class Finance witnessed a 15% drop

For Google AI Mode, it’s almost cosmopolitan decline. Every vertical isolated from Fashion & Apparel saw important decreases successful marque diverseness (-10% aliases more). 

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Key takeaway: ChatGPT and Google AI Mode person different approaches to which brands they mention. Each exemplary needs to beryllium tracked individually.

Note: We cipher diverseness arsenic the number of unsocial brands mentioned per full prompts successful each industry.

Changes successful Source Diversity are Equally Unpredictable

Volatility is the connection for root domains arsenic well. 

In ChatGPT, root diverseness accrued drastically and uniformly crossed each categories. The information shows akin shifts crossed the board, almost doubling the number of sources successful astir verticals.

Meanwhile, wide root diverseness remains reasonably unchangeable successful Google AI Mode. 

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Key takeaway: At the moment, sources are unchangeable successful Google AI Mode, but ChatGPT showed immense changes successful October. This volatility illustrates conscionable really accelerated moving AI hunt tin be.

How Stable are the Top Performing Brands?

Over 3 months, location were 25 caller entrants successful the apical 100 brands classed by weighted Share of Voice. The mostly were successful later positions, pinch conscionable 2 of these were successful the apical 50. 

This tells america that the apical 50 are reasonably unchangeable complete time, but the volatility successful AI hunt is capable that the bottommost half of the apical 100 tin change.

61 of the apical 100 brands were communal successful some ChatGPT and Google AI Mode, showing a precocious grade of similarity.

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Note: To measure the capacity of brands crossed some models we usage a metric called weighted Share of Voice. 

Share of Voice takes into relationship the position a marque is mentioned, really often it’s mentioned, and really celebrated the prompts it appears for are. Based connected personification numbers, we springiness 80% weight to ChatGPT and 20% to Google AI Mode to travel up pinch a mixed score.

What Can We Learn from the Top Performers?

It’s unchangeable correct astatine the top. Looking astatine the apical 15 performing brands overall, we spot that the alteration successful SoV is wrong the +/- 20% range. 

This intends that apical brands shouldn’t expect to summation aliases suffer greater than 20% successful AI visibility complete a akin period. Comparatively constrictive to the wider shifts.

Brand

Weighted SoV % Change

Google

+5.92%

Samsung

-11.53%

Apple

+1.81%

Microsoft

-6.16%

Amazon

+7.83%

Chase

-1.08%

Garmin

+2.44%

American Express

+9.33%

Vanguard

-22.29%

Capital One

-17.08%

Citi

-3.68%

Zoho

0.00%

Sony

-11.41%

Note: These changes are measured arsenic a percent change. This is simply a fairer comparison that allows america to comparison brands of different sizes.

Source Domain Changes successful Both Models

There are important differences successful some the number of sources and their wave betwixt ChatGPT and Google AI Mode, truthful we’ll look astatine each AI exemplary individually. 

What Are the Top Sources successful ChatGPT?

It’s that connection again: volatility. The mean alteration that domains saw successful punctual sum is astir 120% crossed the apical 100. 

For the apical 10, the largest alteration is Reddit dropping by astir 82%, which is simply a important correction. 

Source Domain

Weighted SoV % Change

wikipedia.org -52.70%
forbes.com +44.29%
amazon.com

+89.39%

reddit.com

-82.21%

techradar.com -44.16%
nerdwallet.com

+19.43%

investopedia.com -25.16%
usnews.com

+137.38%

tomsguide.com

-45.16%

medium.com

+41.03%

Note: Here we measurement successful punctual sum %. This is really galore of the prompts a peculiar root domain features in. For example, if ChatGPT uses your domain arsenic a root successful half of the prompts, your consequence would beryllium 50%. 

Overall, we spot Reddit utilized arsenic a root successful 80% less prompts. That being said, our first information from August recovered Reddit being utilized arsenic a root astatine an exceptionally precocious rate: 135% of prompts. This intends it was utilized an mean of 1.35 times for each response. 

Therefore, the alteration seems to beryllium a earthy correction. 

It intends Reddit is still utilized successful astir 24% of prompts, and sees the domain positioned arsenic the 4th astir utilized root successful ChatGPT overall. This is down Wikipedia, Forbes and Amazon.

What Are the Top Sources successful Google AI Mode? 

Google AI Mode sees highly important changes successful October compared to August. 

Contrary to ChatGPT, the astir noteworthy alteration present is Reddit’s accrued usage arsenic a source—which is simply a fascinating development. 

Reddit was cited 75% much and was utilized successful 20% of answers. This makes Reddit the 2nd astir utilized root successful Google AI Mode, down only Amazon.

Source Domain

Weighted SoV % Change

amazon.com +12.70%

reddit.com

+74.32%
youtube.com

+7.43%

nerdwallet.com

+1.95%

google.com -40.20%
bankrate.com -22.77%
investopedia.com +0.42%
bestbuy.com

+42.75%

forbes.com -7.87%

yahoo.com

+50.96%

Other important shifts see increases for Yahoo and Best Buy. 

Yahoo’s summation chiefly comes from Yahoo finance. Clearly this domain has go a trusted root for Finance successful AI Mode. 

Best Buy is an absorbing case. These gains are divided betwixt personification reviews and merchandise pages, serving 2 AI hunt needs successful UGC reviews and actual merchandise info.

Note: Google regularly tests linking to its ain properties, for illustration Google Shopping, wrong AI Mode. These tests make fluctuations successful its root wave earthy and we tin expect them to proceed until Google has a “standard” type of AI Mode. 

Are the Brands that ChatGPT and Google AI Mode Mention Becoming More Similar?

The overlap has remained accordant and reasonably high, pinch very small alteration betwixt ChatGPT and Google AI Mode crossed verticals. Industries do spot different extents of overlap though, pinch Consumer Electronics sharing the astir brands betwixt the 2 models and Business & Professional Services being the slightest similar.

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Key takeaway: Brand similarity is reasonably precocious and remains stable. While the attack to go a apical marque whitethorn alteration by AI model, erstwhile you’re there, you’re difficult to shift.

Are Sources that ChatGPT and Google AI Mode Use Becoming More Similar?

Overall no, there’s little overlap successful October than successful August. But this besides depends connected the vertical. 

Sources utilized successful the Fashion & Apparel and Business & Professional Services verticals person go much alike, but the changes are rather low: 

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Key takeaway: Source similarity is overmuch little than marque overlap. Therefore, you’ll request to return a varied attack for each AI exemplary and tailor this to your industry. 

Reddit Was Corrected successful ChatGPT but Arrived successful AI Mode

Perhaps the biggest alteration was Reddit’s recalibration arsenic a root successful ChatGPT. This floor plan shows the complete image crossed verticals and months. 

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It would beryllium adjacent to opportunity that Reddit was overrepresented successful August and ChatGPT has scaled this backmost to much expected levels successful September and October. 

Overall, Reddit remains vital. It’s still utilized arsenic a root for 15-33% of prompts depending connected the vertical (and remains a apical 10 root successful each).

During the aforesaid clip period, the other is existent for Reddit successful Google AI Mode.

Reddit saw azygous gains betwixt August to October, pinch its usage arsenic a root wide expanding from 11% to 20% of prompts. 

This is adjacent to ChatGPT’s wide usage (24% of prompts), meaning that the 2 models are opening to converge connected Reddit usage. Let’s spot if this inclination holds true. 

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Explore each of these findings for yourself successful the AI Visibility Index’s interactive leaderboards and visuals.

TL;DR: The Key Questions, Answered

Is Reddit still a cardinal root successful AI hunt aft ChatGPT’s correction?
Absolutely. Reddit remains a apical 10 root successful each verticals and the 4th astir cited root successful our dataset. Alongside this, Reddit is gaining prominence successful Google AI Mode, now becoming the 2nd astir cited source.

Was location a ChatGPT hunt algorithm alteration successful September/October?
It seems apt ChatGPT tweaked really answers are composed, seeking to usage much sources per answer.

The grade of Reddit’s correction seems manual. However, different changes, for illustration the wide number of sources expanding hugely, are important capable to support this theory. 

Did Google’s removal of seeing 100 results per page impact AI hunt results, and if truthful how?
Both the number of sources and mentioned brands successful ChatGPT accrued since this change. If its crawling expertise was abruptly constricted to only domains ranking successful the apical 10, we would expect much important shifts successful the data. 

While the Reddit scaleback is significant, this seems much apt to beryllium an soul change, than straight related to Google.

How unchangeable are AI hunt rankings complete time?
Fairly stable. We saw 25 caller brands participate the apical 100, but chiefly successful the little positions. A precocious grade of overlap is besides observable betwixt the models. 

How should brands respond to these findings? 
ChatGPT and Google AI Mode work together 67% of the clip connected which brands to mention, but conscionable 30% of the clip connected what sources to use. 

This intends that you request to spell aft media mentions utilizing an AI exemplary circumstantial strategy: the sources ChatGPT uses are fundamentally different from those that AI Mode uses. To maximize your assemblage reach, you request to do good successful both. 

Semrush Enterprise AI Optimization lets brands way thousands of prompts crossed each starring LLMs, past place which sources are astir important and really to optimize for them.

Explore the AI Visibility Index for More Insights

Explore our AI Visibility Index interactive tract to observe moreover much trends, decode the strategies that work, and enactment up of the competition.

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