The rise of the agentic web: why being found by AI matters more than SEO

Something extraordinary is happening right under our noses. We're witnessing the birth of what Microsoft calls the agentic web, where AI agents don't just search for information but actually make decisions and take action on behalf of users and organizations. This isn't another tech buzzword that'll fade in six months. This is a complete reimagining of how humans interact with the digital world.

Think about it. The global AI agents market jumped from $5.4 billion in 2024 to a projected $50.3 billion by 2030. That's a 45.8% compound annual growth rate. But numbers only tell part of the story. What we're really seeing is the emergence of autonomous digital workers that don't just retrieve information—they think, decide, and act.

Beyond search: the agentic revolution

AI agents are already here

The transformation isn't coming. It's already happened. During Walmart's earnings call in August 2024, they dropped a bombshell: their generative AI had enhanced over 850 million catalog data points. To put that in perspective, they said it would have taken 100 times more human workers to accomplish the same task.

Meanwhile, half of all organizations surveyed had already deployed agentic AI by 2024. Another 35% are planning to jump in within the next two years.

"ChatGPT isn't just answering questions anymore. It's booking your dinner reservations, planning your grocery trips, and analyzing your competitors while you sleep. You can literally tell it to 'look at my calendar and brief me on upcoming client meetings based on recent news' and it just... does it."

This isn't search. This is delegation.

The numbers paint a clear picture

User behavior is shifting faster than most people realize. Gen Z is leading the charge, with 41% already relying on AI assistants for shopping and making decisions. But here's the kicker: when people search on Google, 58.5% of those searches result in zero clicks to websites. Zero. People are getting their answers without ever leaving the search page.

Traditional search impact

When AI Overviews appear in search results, organic click rates plummet by more than half, dropping from 1.41% down to just 0.64%. Traditional SEO practitioners are watching their traffic disappear before their eyes.

Quality engagement

Users who do click through from AI chatbots spend 28% longer on websites compared to traditional Google searchers. They spend an average of 10.4 minutes per session versus 8.1 minutes from Google.

The end of the link economy

From clicks to citations

Traditional SEO was built on a simple premise: get people to click from search results to your website. The agentic web operates on an entirely different model. James Cadwallader from conversational search platform Profound put it bluntly: "SEO will become an antiquated function." Why? Because users don't care where their answers come from as long as they get what they need.

In this new world, discoverability isn't about ranking first on Google. It's about being the trusted source that AI agents turn to when they need authoritative information.

The rise of AEO: answer engine optimization

While everyone's still obsessing over traditional SEO rankings, a new discipline called Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) is emerging. AEO focuses on getting your content cited by AI-powered platforms like ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, and Google's AI Overviews.

Companies tracking their metrics are seeing the shift. 62% report declining clicks and web traffic from search engines. Yet those implementing AEO strategies are experiencing something different. Their AI-driven traffic shows lower bounce rates and higher conversion rates compared to traditional search visitors.

Real world implementation at scale

Enterprise adoption is accelerating

The enterprise world isn't waiting around. 82% of companies plan to integrate AI agents within three years. Nearly half of technology leaders say AI is now "fully integrated" into their core business strategies.

Verizon: 40% revenue increase within AI-powered customer service

Airbnb: 15% reduction in human support requests with "AI first" autonomous booking agents using 15,000+ internal documents

Walmart: 850M+ catalog data points enhanced, requiring 100x fewer human workers

The strategic imperative

Why this matters more than traditional SEO

The agentic web isn't just changing how people search. It's fundamentally altering how they make decisions, buy products, and interact with businesses. ChatGPT already ranks as the fifth most visited site globally with nearly 5 billion monthly visits.

Google's total search volume grew 21.6% from 2023 to 2024, but clicks to external websites didn't follow the same trajectory. The gap between rising search activity and declining click-throughs reinforces how closed the search landscape has become.

The trust transfer revolution

While SEO professionals are skeptical about AI Overviews, regular consumers are surprisingly open to trusting AI-generated content:

Early mover advantages

Companies getting featured in AI Overviews are seeing remarkable results:

Preparing for the agentic future

Google wants to do your searching for you. They can pull results from multiple queries and stitch together comprehensive, intelligent responses. In this environment, traditional SEO tactics become baseline requirements, while AEO strategies become the real differentiator.

The time to act is now

IDC Analysts predict 25% of organic traffic will shift to AI chatbots and virtual agents by 2026. Yet surprisingly few companies have taken action:

• 18% - Have no current plans to address AEO
• 23% - Still in early planning stages

Companies that thrive in the agentic web will recognize this shift not as a threat to SEO, but as its natural evolution. Many signals that help you rank in Google also increase your chances of being cited by AI tools. But the strategic focus must expand from attracting human clicks to earning AI citations.

The future is already here

The agentic web represents more than a new way to search. It's a completely new way to interact with digital information and services. Microsoft is investing heavily in making this vision reality through their platforms and infrastructure. AWS announced a second $100 million investment in their Generative AI Innovation Center to accelerate autonomous, agentic AI development.

The question isn't whether the agentic web will emerge—it's already here. The real question is whether your business will be discoverable within it. Search is no longer about ranking. It's about being understood by AI and delivering the best, most accessible answers fast.

"In this new paradigm, being found by AI doesn't just matter more than traditional SEO. For many businesses, it's becoming the only way to matter at all."

Investment highlights

• Microsoft's heavy platform investments
• AWS $100M Generative AI Innovation Center

The new reality

The future belongs to those who recognize that the agentic web isn't coming—it's here. And it's time to be found within it.

Key takeaways

• The agentic web represents a fundamental shift from search to delegation, where AI agents make decisions on behalf of users
• Traditional SEO focused on rankings and clicks; AEO focuses on being cited by AI systems and building authority
• 50% of organizations have already deployed agentic AI, with 82% planning integration within 3 years
• Companies featured in AI Overviews see 38-39% improvements in click-through rates
• Success requires optimizing for AI comprehension, building citation authority, thinking in workflows, and embracing transparency