AEO agency or SEO agency?
An SEO agency works to rank your pages in Google and win the click; an AEO agency works to get your brand named inside the answers ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, Gemini and Perplexity give. Both need crawlable pages with clear facts, but AEO adds work on the sites AI reads and measurement that asks each question several times on each AI app. KailxLabs is an AEO agency that starts with a $1,500 AI visibility baseline.
What actually differs?
The two share a technical base. They differ on the goal, the sources that matter and what counts as proof.
| Question | SEO agency | AEO agency |
|---|---|---|
| The goal | Rank pages in Google and win the click | Get the brand named and described correctly inside the answer |
| Where it shows | Blue links and map packs | ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Google AI Mode, Gemini, Copilot and Perplexity |
| What moves it | Your pages, links and technical health | Your pages plus the lists, reviews, directories and profiles AI reads and cites |
| How it is measured | One position per keyword from a rank tracker | Each question asked several times on each AI app, reported as a count with a likely range |
| What counts as proof | Traffic and ranking charts | A change that holds against a control group of questions nobody touched |
| Facts and accuracy | Rarely in scope | Prices, policies and details kept identical wherever AI reads them |
| Shared base | Crawlable, indexed pages with clear facts in visible text | The same base, which AEO cannot skip |
Does AEO replace SEO?
No. Google's own guide, updated 10 Jul 2026, says optimizing for its generative AI features is still SEO and needs no special markup.
A page has to be indexed and eligible for a snippet before Google can link it inside an AI Overview or AI Mode. ChatGPT, Perplexity and Claude run their own crawlers, which also need access. So the SEO basics stay: fast, crawlable pages, facts in visible text, and one clear page per service or product.
What SEO does not cover is the rest of the answer. AI names brands from the lists, reviews and profiles it reads, and those pages are not yours. It also changes from run to run and from app to app, so a rank tracker cannot tell you whether you are named.
Why clicks alone mislead now
Buyers now choose inside the answer. Rankings and traffic reports miss that step.
An AI Mode only Google cut clicks to outside sites by 18.8 points. Removing AI Overviews raised them by 8.8 points.
Wang et al., arXiv 2608.18352, preregistered experiment · 1,100 users · Mar 2026, published Aug 2026
Brands shoppers chose had 2.2x the ChatGPT share of voice of brands they passed over: 24% against 11%.
Profound, "The Shortlist is the New Shelf" · 56 participants, 224 shopping tasks · 14 Jul 2026 · vendor data
When is SEO alone enough?
Not every business needs AEO yet. These are the signs either way.
- Your buyers search brand names, not open questions
- Your site has basic crawl or indexing problems still unfixed
- AI already names you on your main buyer questions, measured properly
- Buyers ask AI "best", "which" or "compare" questions in your category
- AI names rivals, or gets your prices and details wrong
- Your traffic fell while your rankings held
Where KailxLabs fits
AI visibility baseline
$1,500 one time. 50 buyer questions on four to six AI apps, several runs each, with the fix list. Priority questions checked daily once you continue.
About the baselineAnswer ready build
$4,995 one time. The fixes shipped in 10 working days: pages AI can quote, facts, listings and crawler access. Then tracked for 45 days. You keep everything.
Answer ready websiteCitation engineering
Programs from $2,000 a month: placements in the sources AI cites, brand facts and a monthly proof report.
Citation engineeringAEO versus SEO, answered.
Does AEO replace SEO?
No. Google says optimizing for its AI features is still SEO, and a page has to be indexed and eligible for a snippet before Google can link it in an AI answer. AEO adds the work off your site and the measurement that SEO reporting does not cover.
Can my SEO agency do AEO?
Some can. Ask how they measure: which AI apps, how many runs per question, whether they read the app or an API, and whether they hold back a control group. If the answer is one screenshot a month, it is not AEO measurement.
Will AEO bring back the clicks I lost?
Nobody should promise that. In a preregistered experiment, AI Mode cut clicks to outside sites by 18.8 points. The realistic goal is to be the brand the answer names, because that is where the shortlist now forms.
What does KailxLabs charge?
The AI visibility baseline is $1,500 one time. The answer ready build is $4,995 one time. Programs start at $2,000 a month.
- 26 Sep 2026: page published.
Talk to the founder.
20 minutes with Kailesk Khumar. You leave knowing where AI names you today, and what it would take to become the answer.
- A live look. We ask five of your buyer questions on ChatGPT, Google and Perplexity while you watch.
- The reasons. The three biggest reasons AI names a rival instead of you.
- The plan. A clear next step and its price, whether or not you hire us.
Pick a time that suits you. The calendar invite arrives straight away. Prefer a link? Book on Cal.com.