In 2025, the SEO world wrestled with whether AI demanded a fundamental change in strategy. In 2026, that debate continues, but we’ve clearly shifted further into experimentation and real-world implementation. To succeed in this evolving search environment, we must dismantle channel silos and empower the SEO team to serve as the strategic quarterback for brand authority. Organic search has long been a rich source of insight into consumer behavior, platform evolution, brand visibility, and organic influence. Today, LLMs are feasting on earned media signals. Press releases, social posts, UGC, your own site, retailer pages, YouTube content, and Reddit discussions all heavily shape the topic ecosystems LLMs rely on to interpret your brand and products and to craft responses for users. This moment calls for a new operating system: a cross-functional framework that elevates SEO from a purely technical function to the central engine of your brand’s presence.
A phased roadmap for a cross-functional AI SEO team
When I speak with brands about 2026, I hear a familiar concern: “There’s so much to tackle, and our capacity is limited.” They’re right. Trying to execute every possible initiative will drain time and budget. The key to building a stronger AI SEO operating system is to pinpoint what matters most right now and to orchestrate collaboration across teams based on those priorities. You don’t have to roll everything out simultaneously. Start by defining your highest-impact cross-functional partnerships, guided by your SEO…