100 AI Search, AEO, GEO & SEO Experts to Follow

AI Search, Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) and SEO bring together expertise in information retrieval, technical optimization, content strategy, entity understanding and search analytics. This directory features 100 AEO, GEO & SEO researchers, practitioners, educators and industry professionals working across these disciplines. Explore their specialties and LinkedIn profiles to follow developments in traditional and AI-powered search.
Cihan Geyik
7 min read
Last Updated:
October 5, 2026
100 Experts Shaping AI Search, featuring an AI visibility dashboard with ChatGPT, Google, Gemini, Claude and Microsoft icons.
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In This Article

Introduction

AI Search is changing how people discover, compare and decide. As ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Google AI Mode, Gemini, Claude and Perplexity reshape online discovery, marketers are increasingly learning from AI Search experts, Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) specialists, Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) researchers and experienced SEO practitioners.

This directory brings together 100 AI Search, AEO, GEO and SEO professionals to follow. Their work spans technical SEO, content strategy, information retrieval, AI citations, search analytics, brand visibility and the technologies behind AI-powered discovery. Whether you're looking for AI SEO experts to follow, technical research or practical search marketing insights, the five categories below provide a starting point.

At Ansvisor, we're building an MIT-licensed, open-source AI Search Intelligence Platform with more than 50 contributors. Available in the cloud or as a self-hosted solution, Ansvisor is designed to bring greater transparency, flexibility and scalability to AI Search, helping teams work toward better AI visibility outcomes.

As we develop the platform, the research, insights and practical experience of professionals across AI Search, AEO, GEO and SEO help inform our thinking. To make their work easier to discover and share with your team, we've organized these 100 professionals by specialty. Explore their biographies, learn from their research and connect with them on LinkedIn.

Content Strategy, Semantic SEO & Topical Authority

Explore content strategists, semantic SEO specialists and organic-growth practitioners whose work examines topical relevance, entities, audience understanding, content architecture and sustainable search visibility. Their research and educational resources can help marketers understand how content strategy connects with traditional SEO and emerging AI-powered discovery.

01B2B Content

Alex Birkett

Alex Birkett works on B2B content strategy, organic growth and experimentation. His educational content explores effective content systems, measurement and connecting SEO with growth objectives.

02International SEO

Aleyda Solís

Aleyda Solís founded Orainti and publishes resources on international SEO, technical SEO and AI Search. Her educational work includes SEOFOMO and Crawling Mondays.

03Content Marketing

Ann Smarty

Ann Smarty is an SEO, AEO and GEO strategist and educator whose work includes content marketing, digital PR and search visibility. She shares practical guidance on content promotion and optimization.

04SEO, GEO & Agentic AI

Bilal Dalgun

Digital strategist specializing in SEO, Generative Engine Optimization and agentic AI systems.

05Search Strategy

Brent D. Payne

Search marketing professional connecting SEO strategy and organic audience development with digital marketing objectives.

06Technical SEO

Crystal Carter

SEO professional sharing educational resources on technical search, structured data and AI-powered discovery.

07SEO Education

Cyrus Shepard

SEO consultant and educator known for practical research on organic search, content optimization and search visibility.

08Information Retrieval

Dawn Anderson

Technical SEO consultant and educator exploring information retrieval, search engine behavior and organic visibility.

09Product-Led SEO

Eli Schwartz

Eli Schwartz is an SEO strategist and author known for his product-led approach to organic growth. His work focuses on aligning search strategy with audience needs and product value.

10Organic Growth

Ethan Smith

Ethan Smith works on organic growth and SEO strategy. His professional focus includes building scalable search programs, connecting content with user demand and measuring the business impact of organic discovery.

11B2B SEO

Gaetano Nino DiNardi

Gaetano Nino DiNardi is a B2B marketing strategist whose work spans SEO, content strategy and organic customer acquisition. He shares perspectives on connecting search visibility with business growth.

12International SEO

Gianluca Fiorelli

International SEO consultant and educator covering search strategy, content optimization and technical SEO.

13Enterprise SEO

John Shehata

Search strategist with experience in enterprise SEO, audience development and organic visibility at scale.

14Semantic SEO

Koray Tuğberk Gübür

Koray Tuğberk Gübür founded Holistic SEO & Digital and teaches semantic SEO, topical authority and search-focused content architecture. His research explores topics, entities and relationships between documents.

15Audience Research

Rand Fishkin

Rand Fishkin is a co-founder of SparkToro and Moz. His research and commentary explore audience behavior, zero-click search and the changing ways people discover information online.

16Content Strategy

Ross Hudgens

Founder of Siege Media, focusing on content marketing, organic growth and search-driven editorial strategies.

17Content Marketing

Steven Schneider

Content marketing professional working across organic growth, content operations and search-focused publishing.

18SEO Research

Tim Soulo

Tim Soulo is a marketing professional associated with Ahrefs, known for sharing data-driven SEO insights, content marketing strategies and research on organic search performance.

19Content Strategy

Tom Critchlow

Digital strategy consultant exploring SEO, independent consulting and the relationship between content and business strategy.

20Search Strategy

Wil Reynolds

Wil Reynolds is the founder of Seer Interactive and an educator focused on data-driven search marketing. His work explores audience intent, analytics and connecting search strategy with customer needs.

Technical SEO, Crawling & Search Infrastructure

Follow technical SEO specialists and search researchers working on crawling, JavaScript rendering, indexing, structured data, website architecture, search algorithms and search infrastructure. Their work provides useful context for understanding how search engines access, process and present web content as AI-powered search experiences continue to evolve.

21JavaScript SEO

Bartosz Góralewicz

Bartosz Góralewicz is known for technical SEO research, particularly JavaScript rendering and search engine crawling. His work investigates how modern websites are processed by search systems.

22Search News

Barry Schwartz

Barry Schwartz is a search industry journalist and founder of Search Engine Roundtable. He reports on search engine updates, SEO developments and AI-powered search features.

23SERP Research

Brodie Clark

Brodie Clark is an SEO consultant and researcher who studies Google search result features and changes in organic visibility, including AI Overviews and evolving SERP layouts.

24Technical SEO

Chris Green

Chris Green works across technical SEO, search analytics and organic search strategy. His professional focus includes translating technical search challenges into actionable recommendations for marketing teams.

25Entity SEO

Dixon Jones

Dixon Jones is an SEO professional known for his work with link data, search technology and entity-based optimization. His research explores how relationships between information influence search.

26Search Technology

Duane Forrester

Duane Forrester works across search technology, SEO and AI discoverability. His industry experience includes helping organizations understand search platforms and online discovery.

27Google Search

Gagan Ghotra

Gagan Ghotra shares information about Google Search, technical SEO and developments in search technology. His content helps practitioners follow search engine changes.

28Search Infrastructure

Gary Illyes

Gary Illyes is a Google Search representative who shares technical explanations of search infrastructure, crawling and indexing. His public discussions help practitioners understand search engine behavior.

29Google Algorithms

Glenn Gabe

Glenn Gabe is an SEO consultant and researcher who analyzes Google algorithm updates and organic search performance. His case studies examine changes in rankings, traffic and search result features.

30SEO Automation

Jean-Christophe Chouinard

Jean-Christophe Chouinard creates educational resources about Python, SEO automation and data analysis. His work helps practitioners apply programming to technical search challenges.

31Search Strategy

Jes Scholz

Jes Scholz is a search strategist whose work covers technical SEO, organic growth and search experience optimization. She shares insights into website performance and evolving search technologies.

32WordPress SEO

Joost de Valk

Joost de Valk is the founder of Yoast and a long-time contributor to the SEO and WordPress communities. His work focuses on making websites easier to optimize and discover.

33Google Search

John Mueller

John Mueller is a Google Search representative known for explaining how Google handles crawling, indexing and technical website issues. His public guidance helps website owners understand search documentation.

34Structured Data

Jono Alderson

Jono Alderson works across technical SEO, structured data and website performance. His educational content examines how site architecture and technical implementation contribute to search accessibility.

35JavaScript & Search

Martin Splitt

Martin Splitt is a Google Search representative known for explaining JavaScript rendering, website architecture and technical search concepts. His educational content helps developers understand modern search systems.

36SEO Data

Natzir Turrado

Natzir Turrado specializes in technical SEO and data-driven search optimization. His work connects analytics, technical implementation and automation to improve search performance.

37Technical SEO

Patrick Stox

Patrick Stox is a technical SEO specialist and educator known for explaining complex search topics through practical examples and research. His work covers crawling, indexing and website architecture.

38Technical SEO

Patrick Valibus

Patrick Valibus is a French search marketing and e-commerce consultant associated with 410 Gone. His work covers search optimization and digital commerce.

39Technical SEO & AI

Suganthan Mohanadasan

Suganthan Mohanadasan works on technical SEO, search research and practical applications of AI in marketing. He shares insights on search technology and optimization workflows.

40Relevance Engineering

Zach Chahalis

Zach Chahalis works on relevance engineering, analytics and SEO at iPullRank. His professional focus includes technical optimization and search performance.

AI Search, AEO & GEO Research

Discover AI Search researchers, AEO and GEO practitioners, and SEO professionals studying generative search, AI citations, retrieval, query fan-out, source selection and the changing relationship between search engines and large language models. This category is particularly relevant to marketers looking for AI SEO experts to follow and researchers investigating how brands and websites appear in AI-generated answers.

41AI & Content Strategy

Andy Crestodina

Andy Crestodina is the co-founder and CMO of Orbit Media Studios. He teaches content strategy, analytics and SEO, including how brands can adapt their content to AI-powered discovery.

42Content Optimization

Bernard Huang

Bernard Huang works on content optimization and search technology. His professional focus connects content strategy, search relevance and AI-powered tools for understanding organic visibility.

43Machine Learning

Britney Muller

Britney Muller is an SEO and machine learning educator who explores practical applications of AI in search and digital marketing. Her work helps practitioners understand machine learning and AI-powered workflows.

44Open-Source AI Search

Cihan Geyik

Cihan Geyik is the co-founder of Ansvisor, building an open-source AI Search Intelligence Platform focused on transparency, flexibility, scalability and better AI visibility outcomes. He leads its evolution toward an AI Search Execution Platform, supported by GitHub contributors.

45Mobile Search

Cindy Krum

Cindy Krum is known for her work on mobile SEO and search technology. Her research examines how search engines organize and present information, including developments shaping AI discovery.

46Search Experiments

Dan Petrovic

Dan Petrovic researches search engines and AI using experimental and technical methods. His work includes information retrieval, machine learning and search optimization.

47AI Search & GEO

David Konitzny

David Konitzny researches ChatGPT Search and query fan-out behavior. He shares data-driven analysis of retrieval patterns, source selection and AI search citations.

48Growth & AI

Edward Sturm

Edward Sturm creates educational content about SEO, digital growth and emerging AI marketing techniques. His work emphasizes practical experimentation and approaches to improving online discoverability.

49Organic Growth

Kevin Indig

Kevin Indig publishes Growth Memo, covering organic growth, search research and the impact of AI on digital discovery. His work combines data analysis with practical search and growth strategy.

50Organic Growth & AI Search

Lidia Infante

Lidia Infante is an organic growth and SEO strategist whose work spans scalable search programs, technical SEO and the evolving role of AI in search discovery.

51E-E-A-T

Lily Ray

Lily Ray is an SEO strategist and researcher whose work examines Google's search quality systems, E-E-A-T and organic visibility. She shares research on algorithm changes, content quality and AI-powered search.

52AI Search & GEO

Malte Landwehr

Malte Landwehr works on AI search visibility and measurement at Peec AI. He publishes research on how generative search interfaces retrieve sources and recommend brands.

53Search Quality

Marie Haynes

Marie Haynes studies Google search systems, content quality and changes in search experiences. Her analysis connects SEO practice with evolving search technology.

54Search Research

Mark Williams-Cook

Mark Williams-Cook is an SEO practitioner and educator who shares technical research and practical search insights. His work explores search engine behavior, user intent and emerging AI search experiences.

55AI Search & GEO

Metehan Yeşilyurt

Metehan Yeşilyurt researches AI search and GEO, including how ChatGPT retrieves and ranks web content. He shares technical experiments and analysis of AI-powered discovery.

56Relevance Engineering

Michael King

Michael King founded iPullRank and works across technical SEO, content strategy and relevance engineering. His research explores how modern search and AI systems retrieve and evaluate information.

57International SEO

Myriam Jessier

Myriam Jessier is a multimodal GEO expert who would like to consistently state to optimize for LLMs.

58GEO & Semantic SEO

Olaf Kopp

Olaf Kopp works across semantic SEO, entity optimization and generative search. His educational content examines how search engines and language models interpret entities, relevance and connected information.

59AI Crawling

Olivier de Segonzac

Olivier de Segonzac works on technical SEO and publishes analysis of search technology, AI systems and the technical factors shaping online discovery.

60AI Search & GEO

Tomek Rudzki

Tomek Rudzki researches AI search and experiments with how ChatGPT and other AI search experiences select and cite sources. His work connects technical SEO with emerging AI-powered discovery.

AI Visibility, Analytics & Marketing Technology

Explore professionals working on AI search visibility, Answer Engine Optimization, marketing analytics, search technology and AI-powered discovery. Their work connects brand visibility with measurement, data, marketing operations and the evolving ways people discover products and services.

61Technical SEO & Community

Areej AbuAli

Founder of Women in Tech SEO and an international SEO consultant focused on technical search, education and community.

62Search Marketing

Bengü Sarıca Dinçer

Digital marketing professional working across search and online discovery.

63AI Content & SEO

Chima Mmeje

SEO and content strategist exploring organic growth, AI content workflows and search visibility.

64AEO & AI Search

Chris Donnelly

Co-founder and CEO of Searchable, working on AI-powered search and Answer Engine Optimization.

65AI Marketing

Deniz Yörük

Digital marketing professional interested in AI-powered discovery and emerging search technologies.

66AI Visibility

Elliott Bobiet

Works in AI visibility and search marketing, exploring brand discovery across AI-powered platforms.

67AI Search Education

Garrett Sussman

Creates educational content and industry commentary about SEO, AI search and digital marketing.

68AI Marketing

Hank Azarian

Works across AI marketing, digital discovery and emerging technology-driven marketing workflows.

69AI Search

Harpreet Singh

Digital marketing professional whose interests include search and emerging approaches to online discovery.

70AI Search

Ipek Isler

Digital marketing professional working at the intersection of emerging search technologies and digital discovery.

71Search Technology

Jerome Salomon

Works in search and marketing technology, with an interest in digital discoverability.

72AI Visibility

Krinal Mehta

Krinal Mehta is Director of SEO (AEO/GEO) at Newfold Digital, leading organic growth strategy across a multi-billion-dollar portfolio of web hosting and SaaS brands including Bluehost, HostGator, and Yoast. His work focuses on AI search visibility, measurement, and connecting AI citations to revenue.

73Search Analytics

Krishna Madhavan

Works at the intersection of search, marketing analytics, data and digital discovery.

74AI Marketing

MJ Cachon Yanez

Digital marketing professional exploring search and emerging AI-powered discovery.

75AI Visibility

Mostafa ElBermawy

Marketing technology professional exploring AI, digital discovery and the measurement of brand visibility.

76Marketing Technology

Patrick Kajirian

Marketing technology professional interested in AI-powered discovery and emerging digital marketing applications.

77Digital Analytics

Raymond Martinez

SEO and digital marketing professional interested in search visibility, analytics and data-informed optimization.

78Search Analytics

Silvia Martin Palacio

Search and digital marketing professional interested in search visibility and data-driven strategy.

79AI Search

Sungur Kerem Gezergün

E-commerce and technical SEO specialist focused on organic growth, GEO, AI-powered search, and how brands are discovered across the evolving search ecosystem

80AI Search & GEO

Venkata Pagadala

Works on AI search products, building systems and processes using generative AI, AI agents, and classification models.

SEO, GEO Strategy, Education & Industry Voices

Discover SEO and GEO strategists, educators, researchers and industry voices covering organic search, AI-powered discovery, technical optimization, local SEO, analytics and search marketing. Follow their work to explore different perspectives on evolving search technologies and practical approaches to digital visibility.

81Analytics Education

Annie Cushing

Digital analytics educator helping marketers develop practical data, reporting and measurement skills.

82SEO & AI

Benjamin Tannenbaum

Search professional interested in AI applications, digital marketing and organic visibility.

83SEO & GEO

Chris Lever

Works across SEO, emerging AI search practices, optimization and digital discoverability.

84SEO Research

Christian Kunz

Search optimization professional following search engine developments and changes in the search landscape.

85SEO Strategy

Connor Gillivan

Entrepreneur and marketing professional working across SEO, business growth and scalable digital marketing operations.

86Search Strategy

Dorron Shapow

Search marketing professional working across organic visibility, SEO and digital strategy.

87Agentic AI & Infrastructure

Gökhan Geyik

Co-founder and CTO of Ansvisor, working on agentic AI infrastructure, multi-agent systems and AI orchestration.

88SEO Strategy

Stephen Burns

Technical SEO and GEO professional researching how AI training data shapes search visibility.

89SEO Education

Brie Moreau

SEO professional and educator working across technical optimization and practical search strategy.

90SEO Education

Gus Pelogia

SEO professional and educator sharing insights on technical SEO, search strategy and organic growth.

91SEO Strategy

Hanns Kronenberg

SEO professional and industry commentator analyzing search strategy and search engine developments.

92AI Visibility & AEO

James Cadwallader

Co-founder and CEO of Profound, an AI visibility platform helping brands understand their presence in AI-generated answers.

93Search Research

Marcus Tandler

Search marketing entrepreneur and industry speaker covering SEO strategy and search technology.

94SEO Education

Noah Learner

SEO professional and educator creating resources on technical SEO and practical optimization workflows.

95Technical SEO

Pedro Dias

SEO consultant with experience in search quality, technical optimization and search engine behavior.

96SEO Strategy

Rüdiger Dalchow

Search optimization professional interested in digital marketing and evolving discovery technologies.

97Search Marketing

Tom LeBaron

Search marketing professional interested in organic visibility and practical digital growth.

98SEO & Analytics

Victor Pan

SEO and digital marketing professional connecting technical search, analytics and organic growth.

99Local SEO

Will Scott

Digital marketing professional known for local SEO, search strategy and improving local discoverability.

100International SEO

Yağmur Şimşek

International SEO professional and speaker covering technical SEO and search strategy across markets.

Learning from the People Shaping Search

AI Search is bringing technical SEO, content strategy, information retrieval, analytics and brand visibility closer together. Following professionals across these disciplines can help marketers understand new developments, examine research and discover approaches worth testing in their own organizations.

If you're looking for AEO experts, GEO specialists or AI SEO professionals to follow, start with the category most closely related to your work. Technical SEO specialists can help you understand crawling and indexing, while AI Search researchers explore generative answers, retrieval, citations and the changing relationship between search engines and language models.

For teams working on AI visibility, research is only the starting point. Measuring how brands appear across ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews can help connect industry insights with your own search performance.

This directory is an evolving resource. The reference numbers organize the profiles; they do not represent a ranking or endorsement.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between SEO, AEO and GEO?

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) focuses on improving visibility in search engines. Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) addresses discoverability in systems that provide direct answers, while Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) focuses on visibility in AI-generated responses. These disciplines overlap in content quality, technical accessibility, information retrieval and how information is presented.

Why follow AI Search and GEO experts?

Following AI Search researchers, AEO specialists, GEO practitioners and SEO educators helps marketing teams understand emerging technologies, review experiments and identify approaches to test in their own search strategies. Different specialists offer perspectives on technical search, content, analytics, citations and AI-powered discovery.

Does traditional SEO still matter for AI Search?

Yes. Technical accessibility, useful content, clear website architecture and established search optimization practices remain relevant. However, traditional search rankings do not guarantee that a brand or website will be included or cited in AI-generated answers. Teams should measure conventional search performance and AI Search visibility separately.

How can brands measure AI Search visibility?

Brands can monitor mentions and citations in AI-generated answers, track strategically important prompts, compare competitor visibility and analyze AI-referred website traffic. Measurement can include ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews and other relevant AI Search experiences. Tools such as Ansvisor bring these signals together to help teams investigate visibility gaps and identify opportunities.

Are the experts in this directory ranked?

No. The numbers are reference IDs, not scores or rankings. Professionals are grouped by their areas of work, with names generally organized alphabetically within each category. Placement does not represent influence, expertise, performance or endorsement.

How should I choose which experts to follow?

Start with the disciplines most relevant to your goals. Follow technical SEO specialists for crawling, rendering and indexing; content strategists for topical relevance and organic growth; AI Search researchers for generative answers and citations; and analytics professionals for measurement and performance insights. Following people across several categories can provide a broader understanding of search.

Turn AI Search Insights into Action

Learning from AI Search experts is a starting point. Ansvisor helps teams track AI visibility, monitor prompts and citations, compare competitors and discover opportunities to improve their presence across AI-powered search platforms.

Editorial note: This directory covers professionals across AI Search, AEO, GEO, SEO and related disciplines. Profiles are grouped by specialty, not ranked by influence or performance. Professional information and LinkedIn profile links may change over time.

AI search is changing how people discover, compare and decide. Understanding this shift requires learning from the AEO and SEO researchers, practitioners and builders shaping search. We created this directory to make their knowledge and perspectives easier to discover.
— Cihan Geyik, Co-founder of Ansvisor
About the Author
Cihan Geyik

Cihan Geyik

Co-founder at Ansvisor

Cihan Geyik is the co-founder of Ansvisor, an open-source, cloud-ready AI Visibility platform for AI Search. With more than 15 years of experience in digital marketing and growth, he writes about AI visibility, AI search, AEO, GEO, citations, and answer engines. He focuses on helping brands understand and improve their presence across ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, and other AI-powered discovery platforms.

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