TL;DR: By 2026, 25% of searches will be answered by AI platforms without users ever clicking a link. If you haven't engineered your digital narrative, AI will write your story for you — and it might get it wrong. Entity optimization, media validation, and strategic content placement are now essential for leaders who want to control their reputation.
Introduction: The Story AI Tells About You
Try this experiment right now:
Open ChatGPT, Claude, or Perplexity and ask: "Who is [your name] and what are they known for?"
What you see is the story AI tells about you. Not the story you tell. The story AI tells.
For some leaders, the result is accurate and flattering. For others, it's incomplete, outdated, or worse — completely wrong.
Here's the uncomfortable truth: AI is already writing your narrative, whether you've optimized for it or not. And by 2026, Gartner predicts that 25% of traditional search volume will be replaced by AI-driven platforms.
That means stakeholders, investors, and clients won't Google you. They'll ask AI. And if AI doesn't recognize you — or worse, misrepresents you — your reputation is out of your control.
At AlfredoBarulli.com, I help leaders take back control. This article explores how AI builds narratives, why current approaches fail, and how to engineer your entity so AI tells your story, not its own.
How AI Builds Your Narrative
Generative AI platforms like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity don't "search" the web the way Google does. Instead, they use a combination of:
1. Pre-Trained Knowledge (Static)
AI models are trained on massive datasets scraped from the web up to a certain date. If your most authoritative mentions exist only before that cutoff, AI's knowledge of you is frozen in time.
2. Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)
When answering current queries, AI platforms pull real-time information from trusted sources. The sources they trust most:
- Respected media outlets (Forbes, Financial Times, Bloomberg)
- Knowledge bases (Wikipedia, Wikidata, structured databases)
- High-authority websites with strong backlink profiles
3. Entity Recognition
AI engines think in entities — people, companies, concepts — not just keywords. If your entity is clearly defined across multiple authoritative sources, AI recognizes and cites you. If not, you're invisible.
4. Semantic Associations
AI links entities to concepts. If your name consistently appears alongside "luxury entrepreneurship" or "fintech innovation" in credible sources, AI associates you with those concepts.
The takeaway: AI doesn't randomly generate your story. It builds your narrative from the sources it trusts most. If those sources are weak, incomplete, or absent, AI either ignores you or fills gaps with assumptions — sometimes incorrectly.
The Risks of Uncontrolled AI Narratives
Risk 1: Invisibility
If you're not cited in authoritative sources, AI engines simply won't mention you — even if you're a leader in your field.
A recent study by Wolfable (2024) found that sites without strong authority signals are cited 80% less frequently in AI-generated responses, even when highly relevant.
Risk 2: Misrepresentation
AI can confuse entities with similar names, merge outdated information with current facts, or hallucinate details based on weak signals.
Example: A luxury CEO we worked with was consistently confused by ChatGPT with another leader in a completely different industry — simply because they shared a similar name and both had minimal entity clarity.
Risk 3: Competitor Capture
If your competitors have stronger entity definitions and media validation, AI will cite them instead of you — even when you're equally or more qualified.
Edelman Trust Barometer (2024) found that 65% of stakeholders trust AI-generated summaries as credible when making decisions. If AI cites your competitor, you've lost the narrative before the conversation starts.
Risk 4: Reputation Vulnerability
One negative article with strong SEO and backlinks can dominate AI's understanding of you. Without countervailing authority signals, that narrative sticks.
Why Traditional SEO Won't Save You
Many leaders assume traditional SEO strategies will translate to AI visibility. They don't.
What Worked for Google (But Fails for AI):
- Keyword stuffing → AI ignores density, looks for semantic meaning
- Backlink volume → AI prioritizes quality over quantity
- Meta descriptions → AI doesn't read them
- Social signals → Rarely influence AI unless from authoritative accounts
- Paid ads → Zero impact on AI citations
What AI Actually Values:
- Entity clarity across multiple authoritative sources
- Media validation from outlets it trusts (Forbes, FT, Bloomberg)
- Structured data (schema markup) that defines who you are
- Semantic consistency in how you're described across platforms
- Thought leadership in formats AI can parse and cite
This is called Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) — and it's fundamentally different from traditional SEO.
The Framework: Engineering Your AI Narrative
At AlfredoBarulli.com, I've developed a framework for leaders to take control of their AI narrative:
Step 1: Define Your Entity
Goal: Ensure AI understands who you are, what you do, and why you matter.
Actions:
- Create a consistent entity definition across platforms (LinkedIn, personal website, Wikipedia if applicable, Crunchbase, industry databases)
- Use structured data (schema markup) on your website to define key attributes: name, role, expertise, affiliations
- Ensure your bio appears identically across top 5 search results
Example:
Instead of: "John Smith, entrepreneur" Define: "John Smith, founder of [Company], recognized expert in luxury hospitality innovation, featured in Forbes and Financial Times"
Step 2: Build Media Validation
Goal: Get cited in outlets AI engines trust.
Actions:
- Secure interviews, expert commentary, and bylines in tier-one media
- Prioritize outlets AI platforms frequently cite: Forbes, Financial Times, Harvard Business Review, Bloomberg
- Avoid vanity PR in low-authority outlets — these dilute entity strength
Why it matters:
According to Moz (2024), AI platforms cite content from high-authority domains 4.2x more frequently than lower-authority sites, even with identical content quality.
Step 3: Create Semantic Consistency
Goal: Ensure AI associates you with the right concepts and industries.
Actions:
- Publish thought leadership that consistently links your name to key concepts (e.g., "AI governance," "sustainable luxury," "fintech innovation")
- Use natural language Q&A formats AI engines can parse
- Repeat core themes across multiple platforms (LinkedIn, Substack, guest articles)
Example:
If you want AI to cite you as a "fintech innovation expert," ensure those exact phrases appear in:
- Your media features
- Your LinkedIn headline and About section
- Your website's structured data
- Thought leadership articles you publish
Step 4: Optimize for Retrieval
Goal: Make your content easy for AI to retrieve and cite.
Actions:
- Use clear, question-driven headings in articles (AI loves Q&A structures)
- Write concise, quotable insights AI can extract
- Build backlinks from authoritative sites to your content
- Publish on platforms AI frequently crawls (Medium, Substack, LinkedIn)
Step 5: Monitor and Adapt
Goal: Track how AI describes you and refine accordingly.
Actions:
- Regularly query ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity: "Who is [your name]?"
- Use tools like Brand24 or Mention to monitor AI citations
- Identify gaps or errors in AI's understanding and address with new content
- Test semantic associations: "Who are the top experts in [your field]?"
Case Study: From AI Invisibility to AI Authority
A private equity partner approached us with a problem: despite 20 years in the industry, ChatGPT didn't recognize them when queried about "top private equity experts in emerging markets."
Before:
- Strong LinkedIn presence but limited media validation
- No structured entity definition
- AI platforms cited competitors instead
Our Approach:
- Secured features in Financial Times and Bloomberg on emerging market investing
- Published monthly insights on Substack with clear entity definitions
- Implemented schema markup on personal website
- Built semantic consistency around "emerging markets" + "private equity innovation"
After (9 months):
- ChatGPT began citing them as "a recognized expert in emerging market private equity"
- Perplexity included them in top-5 lists when queried
- Investor inquiries increased by 35%, with several citing "AI discovery"
The shift: From invisible to cited — without changing their expertise, just how AI understood it.
Practical Steps to Start Today
1. Audit Your AI Narrative (15 minutes)
- Ask ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity: "Who is [your name]?"
- Note what's accurate, missing, or wrong
- Check if competitors are cited instead of you
2. Strengthen Entity Clarity (1 week)
- Update LinkedIn, website, Crunchbase with consistent descriptions
- Add schema markup to your website defining your entity
- Ensure top 3 Google results have identical bio language
3. Secure One Media Feature (1–3 months)
- Target a single tier-one outlet (Forbes, FT, industry publication)
- Pitch expert commentary or thought leadership
- Ensure your entity is clearly defined in the article
4. Publish Consistently (Ongoing)
- Write monthly insights that connect your name to key concepts
- Use question-driven headlines AI can parse
- Publish on platforms AI crawls frequently
5. Test and Iterate (Monthly)
- Re-query AI platforms to see if your narrative improves
- Adjust entity definitions and content based on results
The AI Narrative Imperative
In 2025, leaders can no longer afford to ignore how AI describes them. The stakes are too high:
- Stakeholders ask AI before they Google
- Investors use AI summaries in due diligence
- Clients discover experts through AI, not traditional search
If you haven't engineered your AI narrative, you're leaving your reputation to chance — or worse, to competitors who have.
At AlfredoBarulli.com, my mission is to help leaders take control of their story in the AI age — through entity optimization, media validation, and thought leadership that ensures AI tells your narrative, not someone else's.
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FAQs
Q1: Why does AI get my information wrong?
Because AI pulls from whatever sources are most authoritative and recent. If those sources are weak or outdated, AI's understanding is flawed.
Q2: How long does it take to influence AI's narrative about me?
With consistent entity optimization and media features, noticeable changes appear in 3–6 months. Full authority takes 9–12 months.
Q3: Can I just pay to be featured in AI responses?
No. AI platforms don't accept paid placements. Authority must be earned through entity clarity and media validation.
Q4: What's the difference between SEO and GEO?
SEO optimizes for Google rankings. GEO optimizes for AI engine recognition and citation — fundamentally different strategies.
Q5: Is LinkedIn content cited by AI?
Rarely. AI prioritizes external media validation over self-published social content.