Source: Data & Studies – SEO Blog by Ahrefs by Patrick Stox. Read the original article
TL;DR Summary of Why AI-Generated Content from Google AI Mode Isn’t Ranking Organically
Google AI Mode content is currently not ranking well in organic search results, despite being decent summaries. Even when published on high-authority sites like the Ahrefs blog, AI-generated pages failed to outrank existing content. This suggests Google’s algorithms may demote or filter AI-generated content due to factors like lack of novelty, accuracy issues, or AI detection. Adding human content might improve ranking potential.
Optimixed’s Overview: Understanding the Ranking Challenges of AI-Generated Content in Google Search
Background and Test Setup
Tests conducted over a month on the Ahrefs blog, a domain with a Domain Rating (DR) of 91 and strong SEO authority, involved publishing AI-generated content targeting topics such as hreflang, technical SEO, and crawled – currently not indexed. These pages used responses directly from Google AI Mode without human edits.
Key Findings from the Experiments
- Ranking Performance: None of the AI-generated pages ranked well for their target keywords, only appearing in branded search results or lower positions.
- Comparison with Existing Content: Even less relevant or less comprehensive pages on the same site outperformed the AI-generated content in rankings.
- Content Quality Issues: Some factual inaccuracies were found in the AI-generated content, which may affect trust and ranking.
Possible Reasons for Ranking Suppression
Several hypotheses explain why AI-generated content struggles to rank, including:
- AI Content Detection: Google may use detection systems to identify and downrank purely AI-generated pages.
- Information Gain: The content may lack unique insights or new information compared to existing pages.
- Content Quality and Relevance: Imperfections or inaccuracies could reduce perceived value to users.
Next Steps and Recommendations
Adding human-generated content or edits to AI-produced pages may enhance their ranking potential, as preliminary personal tests suggest. Continuous experimentation is needed to find the right balance for AI-assisted SEO content strategies.
