SEO at a crossroads: 9 experts on how AI is changing everything

Nine SEO practitioners gathered in Miami on Sept. 13 for an AI SEO roundtable, where they debated how artificial intelligence is reshaping search optimization.

The discussion revealed consensus on one thing:

AI is pushing SEOs to expand their roles, rethink strategies, and brace for uncertainty.

Here’s a recap.

The SEO community risks falling behind reality

Mike King, founder and CEO of iPullRank, argued that too many SEOs are downplaying the transformation already underway:

• “Enterprise organizations especially are bought into the idea of this being an evolution of SEO with their checkbooks and resources at the ready, yet the SEO community is still trying to make it smaller than it is.”

While his firm is advancing with “Relevance Engineering,” King acknowledged challenges around attribution and projection modeling. Executives want clarity, but the space is still underdeveloped.

The rise of AI visibility leaders in SEO

Several panelists stressed that AI demands a broader, cross-functional approach to search.

Leigh McKenzie, head of growth at Backlinko, said:

• “This is the moment for SEOs to reposition themselves as AI visibility leaders. We need to rethink how SEO interacts with the rest of the org.”

Jennifer Cornwell, senior director AI SEO, innovation and growth at Tinuiti agreed, adding that SEOs can’t afford to stay siloed:

• “It’s more important than ever that we’re not siloed as a channel because we need the buy-in and resources to create a complete brand strategy that helps feed our SEO campaigns on these other platforms.”

SEO Matthew Kay put it more bluntly:

• “AI search has made it impossible for SEO professionals to stay in a silo and still expect to find success… It’s time to evolve into a complete marketer or become irrelevant.”

The missing ‘AI search console’ leaves big gaps

One of the biggest frustrations: SEOs still lack visibility into how people are using AI systems.

Devesh Khanal, co-founder of Grow and Convert, pointed to the absence of “AI search console”-like data:

• “Real users are having deeply personal discussions with ChatGPT. Long conversations. Specific details of their situation. And that’s fundamentally not known or knowable barring OpenAI coming out with their version of GSC. So we’re all flying a bit blind.”

Ryan Jones, owner of SERPrecon, noted that the uncertainty should be met with flexibility, not panic:

• “No agency or tool has this fully solved yet. We’re all evolving together, so there’s no need to panic – unless you’re still holding onto the old ways and not changing.”

Attribution and influence are tougher than ever

Measurement and executive expectations loomed large in the discussion.

Nick Eubanks, VP of owned media at Semrush, explained:

• “Attribution [is] at perhaps the most challenging place it’s ever been for organic search. Yes, as a ‘good SEO’ you should have been thinking about these off-site channels all along, but the truth is, they were never yours to control. Brand, Product, PR, they were the final bosses, and all we could do as SEOs was influence.”

Matthew Melinger, cofounder of SEO Gets, added a human element:

• “We need to be marketing therapists to ease the anxiety of execs in an ever-changing industry.”

Don’t lose sight of real consumers in the AI hype

Gaetano DiNardi, principal consultant at Marketing Advice, reminded the group not to lose sight of consumer behavior in the AI hype.

• “We often default to the male viewpoint on AI search behavior but forget women are shopping/spending more and are now using ChatGPT just as much as men. It reinforces the importance of good ol’ fashioned product marketing.”

AI is accelerating SEO’s transformation

The industry is at a crossroads – and AI is accelerating changes that were already pushing SEO out of its narrow lane. As McKenzie put it:

• “The SEOs who lean into this shift will be best positioned to drive growth.”