Answer Engine Optimization
also referred to as: aeo
6 statements across 2 episodes · 2 bullish · 1 bearish · 2 people on the record · first statement Sep 14, 2025 by Ethan Smith · across every show →
Everything said about Answer Engine Optimization, oldest first
Sep 14, 2025
Smith: Answering unaddressed subtopic questions drives LLM search retrieval
“The more you answer all the questions, the better. If you don't answer a question, then you're probably not going to show up, and if you answer a question, this follow-up question and subtopic that somebody else is not answering, you're gonna be more likely to…”
Sep 14, 2025 neutral
Sep 14, 2025 negative
Smith: Majority of SEO and AEO best practices are incorrect
“SEO and AEO are both interesting in that the majority of the information and best practices are not correct. And the reason why is because people don't do analysis. Somebody will say something and then it will get repeated and everyone, and then it becomes bes…”
Sep 14, 2025
Sep 14, 2025 bullish
Smith: Early-stage startups can rank in AEO immediately through citations
“That's not the case for answer engine optimization because you can get mentioned by a citation tomorrow and start showing up immediately. You can have a Reddit thread. You can have a YouTube video. You can be mentioned on a blog, like a, you know, a brand new …”