Confession. I have a slight obsession with AI Search, specifically, understanding how AI actually finds, evaluates, and cites content.
Not because I enjoy staring at data dumps at midnight…
(Okay, maybe a little.)
But because if we’re going to help organizations become more visible in AI search, we need to stop guessing and start understanding what’s happening under the hood.
That’s why one Chrome extension recently caught my attention.
It’s called ChatGPT Search & Fan-outs Capture, and while the name could definitely use a marcom expert’s touch (call me 😉), what it does is fascinating.
AI search isn’t magic.
It’s a process.
When you ask ChatGPT a question that requires web search, there’s a surprising amount happening behind the scenes.
The model isn’t just pulling up one webpage and calling it a day.
It’s launching multiple searches. Evaluating different types of sources. Comparing products. Looking at images. Pulling in news for validation. Finding locations. Recognizing brands, organizations, people, and products.
Then it synthesizes all of that into one response.
Most of us only ever see the final answer.
This tool lets you peek behind the curtain.
It’s like opening the hood of ChatGPT.
The extension captures the searches ChatGPT performs before it answers your question.
Not just the final citations you see, but the different search paths, or “fan-outs”, the model uses to build its response.
That matters because those searches reveal something incredibly valuable:
How AI is thinking about your topic.
Not in a philosophical sense. In a practical one.
What questions is it asking?
What sources is it relying on?
Which brands consistently appear?
Which websites keep getting cited?
If you’re trying to improve AI visibility (GEO), that’s gold.
One feature really stood out to me.
The latest version introduces something called Turn Use Cases.
In plain English? It tells you how ChatGPT classified the user’s question before it answered.
Was it looking for information?
Was it shopping?
Was it searching for local businesses?
That may sound like a small technical detail.
It isn’t.
If AI classifies a question as commercial instead of informational, it may search differently, evaluate different sources, and return completely different types of results.
That’s incredibly useful if you’re creating content designed to be surfaced by AI.
Another feature comms teams should care about…
You can see what kinds of sources ChatGPT actually used.
Not just websites.
Products.
News.
Images.
Maps.
Shopping results.
If your content strategy focuses exclusively on blog posts while AI is answering those questions with product listings, news articles, or local results, you may be optimizing the wrong assets.
And yes…
It even shows which providers supplied the search results.
Again, that’s probably not something most marketers spend their Friday nights thinking about. (I hope.)
But it’s another reminder that AI search isn’t one giant black box.
It’s a collection of systems working together.
The more we understand those systems, the better we can create content that deserves to be found.
My favorite feature?
Brand tracking.
Imagine asking ChatGPT dozens, or hundreds, of questions relevant to your industry and then seeing:
- Which brands appear most often
- How frequently your competitors are cited
- The exact context in which your brand is mentioned
- Which domains consistently influence AI-generated answers
That’s no longer theory.
That’s measurable.
And measurable means improvable.
Here’s what I wouldn’t do.
I wouldn’t use this tool to try to “game” ChatGPT.
That mindset never lasts. Search engines evolved. Social media evolved. AI search will evolve too.
Instead, I’d use it to understand the patterns.
- What types of content earn citations?
- What sources consistently show up?
- What questions does AI keep asking behind the scenes?
Those are strategic insights, not hacks.
The bigger takeaway
One of the biggest misconceptions I hear is that GEO is somehow replacing SEO.
It isn’t. It’s expanding it.
Success in AI search isn’t about sprinkling magic keywords across a webpage.
It’s about becoming a source AI repeatedly recognizes as credible.
That’s built through quality content. Clear expertise. Strong brand signals. Earned media. Thought leadership. Helpful resources.
And increasingly, understanding how AI search systems evaluate all of those signals together.
Tools like this won’t magically make your company more visible.
But they can help answer a much more important question: Why is AI choosing one source over another?
And in my opinion, that’s one of the most valuable questions communicators should be asking right now.
Remember, AI won’t take your job. Someone who knows how to use AI will. Upskilling your team today, ensures success tomorrow. Custom in-person and virtual trainings are available. If you’re looking for something more top-level to jump start your team’s interest in AI, we offer one-hour Lunch-and-Learns. If you’re planning your next company offsite, our half-day workshops are as fun as they are informational. And, of course, we offer AI consulting and GEO strategies. Whatever your needs, we are your partner in AI success.
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