In 2025, AI search was the new kid on the block. People were still figuring it out and trying to determine if it’s a worthwhile investment.
Turns out, it is.
And in 2026, it’s only going to get more popular. Which is why it’s important to pay attention to AI search trends, so you know how to adapt.
Let’s dive into the top eight AI search trends for next year:
1. Focusing on brand visibility
One of the biggest AI search trends for 2026 is focusing on brand visibility. If we’ve learned anything from AI search, it’s that visibility is a crucial component to getting into results from AI search.
But how do you establish brand visibility for your company?
The best way to establish brand visibility is to get your brand mentioned on websites outside your own. Aim to get your brand mentioned on industry third-party websites, social media, and third-party publications.
Think of it like this: Imagine that you are in the market for a new car. You aren’t going to go straight to a car manufacturer’s website and trust everything that they’re saying — you know that they’re just trying to sell you on their car.
Instead, you’re going to go to a bunch of third-party resources to see what objective opinions are about the best car.
Let’s say that you opt to look at 10 resources to see what they say is the most reliable and safest car brand on the market. Out of those 10 resources, 7 of them mention Honda. You’ve seen their brand on multiple diverse resources, which leads you to believe that Honda may be a good choice for you.
The process looks the same for AI search engines. They’re consulting multiple, trusted sources and looking for consistent brand mentions (amongst other factors).
That’s why getting your brand mentioned across the web is crucial in order to get your company cited in search results. The more websites are “endorsing” you, the better chance you have of being cited in AI search results.
2. Increased use of AI engines
This probably comes as no surprise, but another AI search trend for 2026 is an increased usage of AI engines. Even though players like Google remain dominant, there will be more people using AI engines in the coming years.
AI search engines offer something that traditional search doesn’t — conversation.
People can go to an AI search engine and ask it direct questions, send follow-up questions, and instruct it to do specific tasks based on the responses it gives. It also summarizes the information, so users don’t have to spend time clicking through links to find what they need.
Traditional search, on the other hand, is very linear. You search a keyword, look at the results, and investigate them yourself to figure out if they have the information you need.
You can see how AI search engines appeal to people who just want direct, quick answers.
So, in 2026, you’ll likely see a lot more people turning to ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity for answers.
3. More AI Overviews
Another upcoming trend in AI search is more AI Overviews. As it currently stands, AI Overviews aren’t appearing for every search query or query type. They’re mostly appearing for informational queries, rather than transactional or even local queries.
But in 2026, you’ll likely see AI Overviews appearing in more queries.
Previously, they were only appearing in about 26% of queries. As Google continues to improve the AI Overviews to ensure it’s meeting user’s needs, it’s going to integrate them more into search results.
Initially, AI Overviews will likely appear for even more informational and commercial queries. But, in 2026, we may start seeing more AI Overviews in transactional and local queries as well.
4. It’s all about intentions
If you want to see success with your AI search strategy in 2026, you need to focus on search intentions. This is a big shift that’s happening in the search world, and a lot of it is due to AI search engines.
Previously, search was all about focusing on keywords and what terms people are using to find information. But now, in the age of AI, it’s all about intentions and the why behind someone’s query.
This is evident by the fact that when people conduct queries on AI search engines, they’re often asking complete questions vs. short phrases. So instead of searching “best types of TVs,” they’re searching things like “What type of TV is best if I watch a lot of sports?” or “What are the best types of TVs for movie lovers?”
Because people are getting more elaborative with their queries, you need to focus on what the goal of their queries is and what kind of information they’re looking for when they conduct those searches.
5. Establishing your trust to earn citations
As I mentioned earlier, brand visibility is an upcoming AI SEO trend for 2026. But in addition to that, there’s also the trend of establishing your trust and authority in your space, which goes hand-in-hand with the brand visibility.
Since AI search engines operate by consulting multiple sources and pulling information from trustworthy ones, you need to ensure that you are viewed as a trustworthy source to AI search engines.
That means that establishing your E-E-A-T will be crucial in 2026.
E-E-A-T helps you showcase that you are a knowledgeable and experienced company within your sector and industry. You essentially show search engines that you’re a reliable source for information regarding topics in your industry.
By enhancing E-E-A-T on your website, you will have a better chance of being cited in AI search results in 2026.
6. Ads coming to more AI platforms
Another 2026 AI search trend you probably saw coming is the establishment of ads on AI search platforms. Some platforms like Perplexity have already started integrating ads as part of the experience. In 2026, those that don’t have them are likely to launch them.
ChatGPT, in particular, is most anticipated to get ads this year. While CEO Sam Altman isn’t a fan of ads, it doesn’t shut out the possibility that they could end up on the platform. In fact, it’s likely to happen just to keep ChatGPT afloat and start driving some profit.
Overall, though, we’re likely to see more ads on these AI platforms as users start taking advantage of them more. That means new opportunities for you to reach your target audience as they’re engaging with AI search platforms.
7. Focusing on topics, not keywords
Perhaps one of the most difficult shifts, and upcoming 2026 AI search trends, is going from a keyword focus to a topical focus. Now, before you start sounding the alarms and freaking out, we aren’t abandoning keywords completely. They still have value for traditional search experiences.
What I am saying is that you’re going to need to go beyond the keywords for AI search.
AI search engines take context and intentions into account when surfacing responses. It’s going beyond the initial query to find relevant information to deliver to the user.
That means that targeting a keyword alone won’t cut it.
Instead, you need to start targeting topics and creating content that covers all angles, so you have a better chance of being pulled as part of AI’s response.
That leads me into my final AI SEO trend for 2026
8. Becoming topical experts
Establishing topical authority will become a fundamental part of your success in AI search results.
Here’s why:
AI search engines operate on a functionality called query fan-out. When a user conducts a search, AI search engines aren’t just directly searching the query that the user asks. Instead, it’s fanning out into other related queries that could help provide information to the searcher and be contextually relevant.
Because AI search engines operate on this query fan-out model, they consult multiple related sources to the topic. If you’re creating your topical authority and crafting content on multiple relevant subtopics, you increase your chances of being cited in a user’s query.
Building your topical authority will be a key component to AI search success in 2026.
Are you prepared for AI search in 2026?
AI search isn’t going away anytime soon — it’s here to stay. By keeping up with the latest trends in AI search, you’ll ensure your strategy stays agile.
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