# What is generative engine optimization (GEO)?

> Generative engine optimization (GEO) is the practice of making your content more likely to be quoted and cited by AI search engines that write answers instead of listing links. The term comes from a 2023 research paper that tested which content changes raised a source's visibility in generated answers. Today it means the same as answer engine optimization (AEO).

| | |
| --- | --- |
| Origin | GEO: Generative Engine Optimization, arXiv, November 2023 |
| Same as | Answer engine optimization (AEO) |
| Engines | ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews and AI Mode |
| Manifold tools | aeo_run_ai_answers, aeo_get_site_readiness |

## Where the term comes from

The name comes from a research paper, [GEO: Generative Engine Optimization](https://arxiv.org/abs/2311.09735), first posted in November 2023 and accepted at KDD 2024. It treats AI search engines that write an answer from several sources as "generative engines", and tests which changes to a source's content make it more visible in their answers.

## GEO and AEO

Marketers use GEO and AEO, answer engine optimization, for the same work: getting your brand named and your pages cited in AI answers. Pick one term for your team and use it; the method does not change. See [answer engine optimization](https://www.manifoldmcp.com/glossary/answer-engine-optimization) for how to measure it.

## What GEO work looks like

- **Check the engines can read you.** AI crawlers allowed in `robots.txt` and at your CDN, content in the HTML without JavaScript.
- **Answer the question in the first lines.** Engines quote passages that answer the question directly, so put the answer before the background.
- **Be in the sources the engines cite.** For your buyers' questions, find the pages the engines link and get listed, mentioned or answered there.
- **Measure on a fixed set of questions.** Mention rate and citation rate, re-run every few weeks.

## Doing it with Manifold

[`aeo_get_site_readiness`](https://www.manifoldmcp.com/docs/tools/aeo#aeo_get_site_readiness) checks the first point for free. [`aeo_run_ai_answers`](https://www.manifoldmcp.com/docs/tools/aeo#aeo_run_ai_answers) runs your buyers' questions on six engines and returns the brands named and the pages cited: it measures the last point and lists the sources to work on for the third. Getting listed on those sources is work your agent can plan and you do.

## Questions

### Who coined generative engine optimization?

The term comes from the paper GEO: Generative Engine Optimization by Pranjal Aggarwal and five co-authors, first posted on arXiv in November 2023 and accepted at KDD 2024.

### Is GEO different from SEO?

It builds on it. AI engines search the web before they answer, so pages that rank and answer the question clearly are more likely to be cited.

### Which tools do I need for GEO?

A way to see what the engines answer for your buyers' questions, which sources they cite, and whether their crawlers can read your site. Manifold gives your agent all three.

## Next

- [What is answer engine optimization?](https://www.manifoldmcp.com/glossary/answer-engine-optimization)
- [AI visibility MCP server](https://www.manifoldmcp.com/mcp/ai-visibility)
- [AEO tools in the docs](https://www.manifoldmcp.com/docs/tools/aeo)

## Sources

- [GEO: Generative Engine Optimization (arXiv 2311.09735)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2311.09735)

Published 6 October 2026. Updated 26 October 2026.