AI Search Could Influence $750 Billion in Revenue by 2028: How Consumer Discovery Is Changing
AI search is transforming product discovery, ecommerce, and consumer behavior. Explore how brands can adapt to the next era of search.
Introduction
Search is evolving from a system that primarily delivers links into one that increasingly helps people make decisions.
Consumers can now ask AI platforms to compare products, explain differences, identify the best option for a particular need, summarize reviews, or recommend brands. Instead of opening ten tabs and conducting multiple searches, they can increasingly begin with one detailed conversation.
This shift is creating a new category of AI consumer discovery.
Industry research indicates that around half of consumers are already using AI-powered search, while AI-driven experiences could influence as much as $750 billion in US consumer spending by 2028. At the same time, traditional search traffic could face significant pressure as AI begins influencing decisions earlier in the customer journey.
For brands, the question is no longer simply:
“How do we rank on Google?”
It is becoming:
“How do we become visible when consumers ask AI what they should buy?”
01 · Decision Engine
AI Search Is Turning Search Into a Decision Engine
Traditional search largely operates around keywords and webpages. AI-powered search introduces a more conversational model.
A consumer can describe a problem, provide preferences, establish a budget, and ask for recommendations in one interaction.
For example:
Traditional search
“Best running shoes for marathon training”
AI search
“I run four times a week, am training for a half marathon, have mild knee discomfort, and want shoes under $150. Which models should I consider?”
The second query contains substantially more context.
AI systems can use that context to organize information around the user's specific objective rather than simply returning a list of webpages.
Research indicates that more than 70% of AI-search users use these systems for early-stage questions involving categories, products, brands, and services. However, usage extends across the broader decision journey as well.
That is why AI search and consumer behavior are becoming increasingly connected.
02 · Recommendations
From Search Results to AI Recommendations
The biggest change may be what happens before the click.
In a conventional journey, a consumer might search for a product, visit several websites, compare specifications, read reviews, and then form an opinion.
AI-powered search can compress several of these steps into one interaction.
The emerging discovery journey
Need → Question → AI research → Comparison → Recommendation → Purchase
This creates a new form of AI-powered product discovery in which the AI-generated response can influence which brands consumers even consider.
Research across sectors including electronics, grocery, travel, wellness, apparel, beauty, and financial services indicates that a substantial share of consumers are already using AI-based search when making purchasing decisions.
For marketers, this means visibility is moving upstream.
A brand may lose a potential customer before that customer ever reaches its website.
03 · Revenue Opportunity
Why the $750 Billion Opportunity Matters
The projected $750 billion AI search revenue opportunity is significant because AI search is positioned close to the point where information becomes a commercial decision.
If consumers increasingly rely on AI to answer questions such as:
- Which product is best for me?
- Which brand offers better value?
- What are the alternatives?
- Which product has the strongest reviews?
- What should I buy within my budget?
then the AI-generated answer can shape the consumer's consideration set.
Research shows that 44% of AI-search users describe AI search as their preferred source of information, ahead of traditional search, brand or retailer websites, and review sites.
This creates a new marketing challenge: Brands must compete not only for clicks, but for inclusion in the answer.
04 · Ecommerce
AI Search Is Changing Ecommerce
Ecommerce may be one of the areas most affected by AI search transformation.
AI-powered shopping experiences can help consumers discover unfamiliar products, compare alternatives, understand specifications, evaluate reviews, and narrow their choices.
This could fundamentally change product discovery.
Instead of browsing a retailer's category page, a consumer could ask an AI assistant to identify several suitable products based on personal requirements.
The rise of AI shopping agents
As AI systems become more capable of taking actions rather than simply generating answers, shopping could become increasingly agent-driven.
- Understand the user's requirements.
- Research available products.
- Compare alternatives.
- Evaluate reviews and specifications.
- Shortlist suitable options.
- Potentially assist with the transaction.
This points toward a future where AI search and ecommerce become increasingly interconnected.
05 · Search Visibility
Why SEO Alone Cannot Guarantee AI Visibility
Traditional SEO remains an important part of digital strategy, but AI search introduces another layer of visibility.
AI systems do not necessarily rely only on a company's website when constructing an answer.
Research indicates that a brand's own websites may represent only a relatively small share of the sources used by AI-powered search, with systems also drawing from publishers, affiliates, communities, reviews, and user-generated content.
This creates a broader optimization environment.
Brands need to think about their entire information ecosystem, including:
The objective is not to manipulate AI responses. It is to ensure that AI systems can discover accurate, authoritative, consistent, and useful information about the brand.
06 · GEO
GEO Is Becoming a New Layer of Search Strategy
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)
SEO primarily focuses on improving visibility within conventional search results. GEO focuses on how brands are represented within AI-generated answers.
That includes questions such as:
- Does the AI mention the brand?
- Which competitors does it mention?
- What sources support the answer?
- What product attributes does it associate with the brand?
- Is the information accurate?
- Is the overall sentiment positive or negative?
The opportunity is still relatively immature. Research indicates that only 16% of brands systematically track AI-search performance.
That means companies that establish AI search analytics and GEO measurement capabilities early may gain an advantage.
07 · Action Plan
How Brands Can Prepare for AI Search
A practical AI search strategy should begin with measurement rather than assumptions.
Test real consumer questions
Identify the questions customers actually ask at different stages of the buying journey. Then test those queries across major AI search platforms.
Measure:
- Brand visibility
- Competitor visibility
- Citations
- Recommendations
- Sentiment
- Product attributes
- Source coverage
Build content around decisions, not just keywords
Instead of creating content solely around search-volume opportunities, brands should answer the questions consumers use when evaluating products.
This means developing:
- Comparison content
- Buying guides
- Expert explanations
- Product-use cases
- Original research
- Evidence-based FAQs
- Industry insights
Strengthen third-party authority
Because AI systems can use information beyond owned websites, companies need credible representation across the wider digital ecosystem.
Expert publications, reputable reviews, industry communities, and independent sources can all contribute to how an organization is understood online.
Track AI search performance continuously
AI models, sources, rankings, and consumer behavior are changing quickly.
A useful measurement framework should track AI Share of Voice alongside conventional SEO metrics.
Industry Insight
AI Share of Voice Could Become a New KPI
Traditional search has established metrics such as rankings, impressions, clicks, and organic traffic.
The new question
How frequently does AI recommend or mention my brand when consumers ask relevant questions?
This could become an important competitive indicator.
A company may have strong traditional search rankings but weak representation in AI-generated recommendations. Conversely, a smaller challenger could gain disproportionate visibility if AI systems frequently recommend it for high-value consumer questions.
Research has already identified cases where major brands are absent from AI-generated answers and where AI-search visibility does not necessarily correspond with traditional market strength.
That creates an emerging competitive battlefield around AI-driven consumer discovery.
08 · Future of Search
What the Future of Consumer Discovery Looks Like
The future of search is likely to become more conversational, contextual, personalized, and action-oriented.
Consumers will increasingly expect digital systems to understand intent rather than simply match keywords.
The winning brand may not always be the one with the highest traditional search ranking.
It may be the one that consistently provides the information AI systems need to produce a useful answer.
The next search model
SEO + GEO + Consumer Intelligence + Content Intelligence + AI Search Analytics
The brands that understand this shift early can position themselves before AI-powered discovery becomes a mainstream purchasing interface.
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Conclusion
The $750 Billion AI Search Opportunity
The projected $750 billion AI search opportunity represents more than a shift in search technology. It signals a change in the way consumers discover, evaluate, and select products and brands.
The customer journey is becoming increasingly conversational.
The competitive environment is becoming increasingly AI-mediated.
And brand visibility is moving beyond traditional search rankings.
For businesses, the priority should be to understand what consumers are asking, how AI systems answer those questions, which sources influence those answers, and where competitors are gaining visibility.
The future of consumer discovery will not simply belong to the brands that rank.
It will increasingly belong to the brands that are understood, trusted, surfaced, and recommended when consumers ask AI what to choose.
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