Generation AI: What the Next Wave of Search Means for B2B Brands

The Next Generation Has Never Known a World Without AI

In his Generation AI: The Road Ahead keynote at the Wilkins 2025 Elevate Conference, Matt Britton, CEO of Suzy, described a future that is already here: a generation that will never know life without artificial intelligence.

Britton’s point was simple but profound: AI is not just transforming business, it’s rewiring human expectation. And, those changing expectations are already reshaping how brands are found, evaluated, and trusted online.

‍From SEO to AEO and GEO: The Rise of Intelligent Discovery

Search has entered a new era. Where once the goal was to rank high on a results page, today’s challenge is to become part of the answer itself. The Ricciardi Group has been actively following and evolving to meet two emerging disciplines:

• Answer Engine Optimization (AEO): optimizing for AI-powered responses that appear directly within traditional search platforms like Google or Bing.
  
  
• Generative Engine Optimization (GEO): optimizing for inclusion in long-form, conversational answers from tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, or Perplexity.

As AI continues to reshape the search experience, these distinctions matter. Nearly 60% of Google searches now result in zero clicks, as users increasingly find what they need without leaving the results page. For longer, more complex queries (seven words or more), AI-generated overviews appear in over half of all searches.

For B2B marketers, that means visibility, not clicks, is the new metric of success. The focus is shifting from driving traffic to being cited, quoted, or referenced as a trusted source in both human and AI-mediated search.

Applying the “Generation AI” Mindset to B2B Marketing

Britton’s stories about building AI systems, first for his own personal passions and then for his enterprise, underscored a powerful truth: you don’t need to be a technologist to use AI meaningfully. The future belongs to those who experiment fearlessly, integrating AI into their workflows to uncover new insights and efficiencies.

The same spirit of experimentation Britton described is what unites the B2B marketers we advise every day. Our clients often surface the same pressing questions about how to adapt to this new search reality:

Common Question: How do we maintain authority when AI answers before users click?

Best Practice: Create high-authority, structured content that’s machine-readable and trustworthy. Treat every insight as a data source for both people and AI.

Common Question: Will SEO still matter?

Answer: Yes, SEO remains the foundation. AEO and GEO simply extend it into new environments where search engines and AI agents intersect.

Common Question: How do we measure success if traffic declines?

Best Practice: Shift KPIs toward visibility: inclusion in AI overviews, citations in generative responses, and share of voice across answer engines.

Common Question: Where should we start?

Best Practice: Start small and practical. Like Britton’s personal projects, pilot an internal AI tool or GPT trained on your brand’s own content to reveal new patterns and opportunities.

What Does This Mean for Financial and B2B Brands?

In finance, fintech, enterprise technology, and professional services, industries where authority and credibility drive conversion, the implications are clear.

Structured, consistent storytelling is your moat. AI looks for clarity, precision, and verifiable expertise.

• Owned channels are gold: As Britton observed, “every company should be AI-powered.” Your own data, site, and narratives are the foundation of future discoverability.
• Experimentation is the new optimization: The brands that learn fastest will lead—testing AEO/GEO tactics, experimenting with conversational formats, and treating AI as a creative collaborator, not a competitor.

The Human Advantage in an AI-Driven World

At RG, we believe the future of marketing will be defined by how humans and machines collaborate. AI can process data, automate production, and even simulate creativity, but it can’t replicate context, empathy, or cultural intuition.

As we shared in our AI in B2B Marketing white paper, marketers’ value now lies in connecting the dots, not just collecting them. It’s our human ability to interpret nuance, build relationships, and tell emotionally resonant stories that keeps brands relevant in a world of algorithms.

In the era of Generation AI, the most powerful brands will be the most human ones, using technology not to replace people, but to reveal new dimensions of creativity, understanding, and connection.

The Road Ahead

For marketers, the mandate is clear: stop chasing algorithms and start building authority. Stop fearing AI and start teaching it what your brand stands for.

In the new world of AEO and GEO, every answer is an opportunity to lead the conversation—because the brands that design for both human and machine audiences today will define what “discoverable” means tomorrow.

Ready to future-proof your brand for the age of AI search? Ricciardi Group’s AEO + GEO audit helps B2B brands own visibility across both human and AI-powered discovery. Visit https://www.thericciardigroup.com/request-strategy to learn more.

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