Where to Find the Best Research on AI Visibility (2026)

If you work in SEO, content, or growth, you’ve probably noticed how fragmented the AI visibility space still is. There is no single source of truth, but there are a few places consistently publishing useful research. Here is an overview of where to look and what you’ll actually get from each.

1. G2, Review Platforms as AI Infrastructure

Since review platforms started to play a major role in AI visibility, G2 has been actively pushing in that direction.

They are now publishing reports like G2 2026 AI Search Insight Report.

What’s inside

• How B2B buyers use AI tools during product research
• When AI tools influence vendor shortlisting
• Which sources, including review platforms, shape AI-generated recommendations

What you get from it‍

A clear view on how buyer behaviour and AI search intersect.

2. Ahrefs, Most Active in AI Search Research

Ahrefs is probably the most active company in the space right now when it comes to publishing AI search research.

What you’ll find

• Large-scale studies including millions of prompts
• Analysis of which sources get cited
• Patterns in how AI answers are constructed

Important nuance‍

Very useful, but worth reading with the understanding that LLMs go beyond classic SEO logic.

What you get from it‍

Strong, data-backed insights into:

• citation patterns
• source distribution
• visibility dynamics

3. Semrush, Big Data

Semrush consistently publishes solid research based on large datasets.

What you’ll find

• Market-wide trends
• Traffic shifts between search and AI tools
• Impact of AI on organic visibility

Important nuance‍

There is still a clear tendency toward SEO framing of the problem.

What you get from it‍

A strong understanding of:

• how AI is affecting existing channels
• where traffic is moving
• how search behaviour is evolving

4. SE Ranking, Surveys and Practitioner Insights

SE Ranking publishes surveys and studies on how SEO and marketing teams are adapting to AI.

What you’ll find

• Surveys of SEO and marketing teams
• Adoption trends
• Real-world workflows

What you get from it‍

A grounded view of how teams are actually adapting.

5. Similarweb, Market-Level Perspective

Similarweb provides market-level reports on traffic trends and how AI is reshaping digital discovery.

What you’ll find

• Traffic trends across AI tools and websites
• Category-level shifts
• Competitive benchmarks

What you get from it‍

A macro view of what’s happening.

6. Turbine, Data Science Approach to AI Visibility

Turbine focuses on a different layer: how AI visibility actually works from a mathematical perspective.

What you’ll find

• How LLMs use embeddings and semantic similarity
• Why certain brands appear and others don’t
• How to measure and improve visibility using data

Core idea‍

AI visibility is not just tracking. It is a data science problem. LLMs map relationships between concepts using mathematical representations, not just keywords.  

What you get from it‍

A way to move from observing mentions to understanding and influencing outcomes.

Final Thought

Each of these sources covers a different layer:

• G2 → buyer behaviour and decision-making
• Ahrefs / Semrush → large-scale data and patterns
• SE Ranking → how teams are working
• Similarweb → market shifts
• Turbine → how it works under the hood

Together, they give a much clearer picture of a space that otherwise looks messy.