The GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) wave has fully swept the industry. My feed is filled with new GEO agencies, self-proclaimed GEO experts with supposedly years of experience, and a lot of obvious nonsense straight from the person’s favorite LLM.
As in the early years of Google optimization, much remains unknown in AI optimization. Firstly, because the field is still very young and there is little solid experience or reliable research. Secondly, because developments are moving rapidly.
Fortunately, false statements can often be refuted with data. For example, the common claim that LLMs are particularly likely to link to Reddit content. Our analyses clearly show:
- On Google Gemini, Reddit doesn’t even appear among the 100 most frequently linked sources.
- It’s not the case with Deepseek either.
- ChatGPT data shows us that Reddit is only the 44th most-referenced site in english-language output, unlike specialised sites lie Github, IMDB and Mayoclinic.
While there are agreements between Reddit, Google, and OpenAI regarding the use of data in training, this demonstrably does not lead to Reddit being linked as a source more often.
Conclusion: Beware of snake oil salesmen. Just because something is claimed more than once, doesn’t mean it’s true.
