Content Type: Research

  • Fan-out query analysis: ChatGPT, AI Overview and AI Mode

    ChatGPT, Google’s AI Overview and AI Mode, given the same prompt, answer differently, and search differently. A pilot study of the queries behind the answers. ChatGPT runs a single long web search query, mostly reusing the prompt’s own wording, and cites 4.1 pages. Each Google surface runs three or four short head terms and cites…

  • ChatGPT web search uses Google Search and NOT Bing Search (with proof)

    TL;DR: Why this is a big deal? 1. Impact on SEO This means the whole SEO / Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) narrative has come full circle from “Google is dead” -> “rank in Google to show up on ChatGPT”! 2. Shady Practice on OpenAI’s part to route large volumes of private data without explicit declaration…

  • How does ChatGPT Search the Web: Data-Driven Investigation

    – Abhishek Iyer (@distantgradient), o3, Opus, ACME.BOT TLDR takeaways: I analyzed 50 real ChatGPT conversations by intercepting network traffic to uncover the patterns behind when and how ChatGPT searches the web. With that TLDR out of the way, let’s take a step back and try to understand what is happening under the hood.  The Three…