Enception.AI in the News: GEO Research and Startup Coverage

We're excited to share that Enception.AI has been featured in multiple major publications this week, highlighting our pioneering work in understanding and optimizing how AI systems decide what information to surface.

Two significant articles have brought attention to different aspects of our work:

1. SF Bay Area Times featured our research on "How LLMs Decide What to Mention" (October 12, 2025) 2. Montreal Times covered our journey building a GEO startup at Antler Toronto (October 11, 2025)

These features represent more than just company news - they signal growing mainstream recognition that Generative Engine Optimization has become a critical business discipline. As AI-powered answer engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google's AI Overviews increasingly mediate how people discover information, understanding the mechanisms behind AI content selection has never been more important.

The SF Bay Area Times article explores groundbreaking research into the internal mechanisms that determine which entities and concepts AI models choose to include in their responses.

The Core Research Question

When you ask ChatGPT "What are the best hotel booking platforms?", why does it mention Booking.com but not Trivago? Why does it cite certain brands over others when multiple valid options exist?

Our research traces how concepts move through attention heads and gating layers to reach what we call a "mention-activation threshold." Small context shifts can dramatically change whether a concept appears in generated text - even if the model already "knows" about it.

Three Control Mechanisms We Identified

The research proposes three distinct approaches for controlling entity mentions in generative AI systems:

1. Prompt Scaffolds: Structural patterns that stabilize concept paths through the model's neural architecture, making certain entities more likely to surface consistently

2. Mention Gating: Decoding constraints that can filter or prioritize specific entities during the generation process, allowing for finer control over what gets mentioned

3. Fine-Tuning Hooks: Targeted adjustments at neural circuits correlated with entity surfacing, enabling more permanent changes to mention behavior

As quoted in the article, understanding these mechanisms "isn't just theoretical" - it has immediate practical implications for how businesses can improve their visibility in AI-generated content.

Implications for GEO

This research directly informs GEO strategies by revealing:

The ability to understand and influence these mechanisms represents a fundamental shift in how brands approach digital visibility. As we explored in our analysis of why optimization will never die, these patterns are structural - not temporary trends.

The Montreal Times feature provides a behind-the-scenes look at how Enception.AI is being built at Antler Toronto, one of the world's leading startup incubators.

The Founding Story

Co-founder Brittany Jiao shares insights into the founding journey: "I love building startups and experimenting with how AI changes discovery. GEO feels like the next evolution of SEO."

This captures the essence of what we're building - not just another marketing service, but a fundamental rethinking of how businesses optimize for discoverability in an AI-first world.

Working with Antler Toronto

Brittany is collaborating with Jakob Sol Strozberg at Antler Toronto, led by Tammer Kamel. Antler's model of nurturing early-stage AI founders has proven successful in identifying and supporting category-defining companies before they become obvious bets.

The incubator environment provides:

The GEO Value Proposition

As explained in the article, Enception.AI helps companies rank higher in AI-driven search results from platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, and Google's AI Overviews.

Traditional SEO optimized for how Google's PageRank algorithm evaluated websites. GEO optimizes for how AI models perceive brand authority and decide what to cite in generated responses.

This isn't a minor tactical shift - it's a fundamental change in how information discovery works. As we've documented in our research on gaining visibility in generative AI answers, the mechanisms are entirely different from traditional search.

These articles represent more than company milestones - they signal important shifts in how the industry views AI-mediated discovery.

Mainstream Recognition of GEO

When major publications cover research into AI content selection mechanisms and feature GEO startups, it validates what practitioners have observed: generative engines are fundamentally changing how people find information.

According to Gartner research, by 2026, search engine volume will drop 25% due to AI chatbots and virtual agents. This isn't speculative anymore - it's happening now.

Research-Backed Approaches

The SF Bay Area Times coverage highlights that GEO isn't guesswork or manipulation. It's grounded in research into how these systems actually work. Understanding attention mechanisms, gating layers, and mention thresholds provides a scientific foundation for optimization strategies.

This matters because it separates legitimate optimization - making content more accessible and authoritative - from black-hat manipulation that tries to exploit systems without adding value.

Institutional Support

The Montreal Times feature demonstrates that serious institutional players like Antler recognize GEO as a viable market category worthy of investment and support.

When top-tier incubators back GEO startups, it sends a signal to the broader market that this is a real, sustainable business opportunity - not a passing fad.

The Pattern Continues

As we explored in our historical analysis of why optimization will never die, every shift in information discovery mechanisms creates new optimization needs:

These news features document this transition happening in real-time.

Several crucial insights from the research deserve highlighting:

1. Small Context Shifts Have Outsized Effects

One of the most surprising findings is how small changes in context can dramatically affect mention probability. Adding or removing a single sentence in a prompt can be the difference between a brand being mentioned prominently or not appearing at all.

This has enormous implications for content strategy. It suggests that precision in how content is structured and framed matters more than sheer volume.

2. Models "Know" More Than They Mention

The research reveals that AI models often have knowledge about entities but choose not to mention them based on contextual factors. This means visibility isn't just about being in the training data - it's about creating conditions where the model decides to surface that information.

This explains why some well-known brands get cited less frequently than smaller competitors in certain contexts. The knowledge exists; the mention conditions don't align.

3. Controllability is Possible

Perhaps most importantly for practitioners, the research demonstrates that mention behavior is controllable through several mechanisms. This means GEO isn't about hoping for favorable treatment - it's about understanding systems well enough to improve outcomes systematically.

The three control mechanisms (prompt scaffolds, mention gating, and fine-tuning hooks) provide a taxonomy for thinking about different optimization approaches.

4. Causality Can Be Tracked

The ability to trace how concepts move through the model's architecture enables better tracking of prompt-to-output causality. This moves GEO from "spray and pray" toward data-driven, measurable optimization.

As we've discussed in our guide on monitoring GEO and AEO conversions, measurability is essential for treating GEO as a serious business discipline rather than experimental speculation.

What does this research mean for businesses trying to improve their AI visibility?

For B2B SaaS Companies

If you're selling software, understanding mention mechanics helps you:

For E-commerce Brands

E-commerce companies can use these insights to:

For Local Businesses

Even local businesses benefit from understanding AI mention dynamics:

For Publishers and Media

Content creators and publishers can:

The key insight: these aren't tricks or hacks. They're legitimate improvements to content quality and structure that serve both AI systems and human readers.

This coverage represents just the beginning of serious research into GEO mechanisms.

Emerging Research Areas

We expect to see significant research activity in:

Multi-Modal Mention Dynamics: How do visual, textual, and structural signals interact to influence mention probability? As AI systems become more multi-modal, understanding these interactions becomes crucial.

Cross-Platform Optimization: Different AI platforms (ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Gemini) likely have different mention dynamics. Research into platform-specific optimization while maintaining content quality will be valuable.

Temporal Dynamics: How do mention probabilities change over time as models get updated? Understanding temporal stability of optimization efforts helps businesses plan longer-term strategies.

Competitive Mention Dynamics: When multiple similar entities exist, what determines which gets mentioned? This is crucial for competitive positioning in AI-mediated discovery.

Ethical Considerations: As GEO becomes more sophisticated, research into ethical optimization practices - distinguishing legitimate visibility improvement from manipulation - becomes essential.

The Academic-Industry Connection

The fact that serious research institutions are studying these questions, while startups are building practical applications, creates a virtuous cycle:

This pattern mirrors how SEO evolved from experimental tactics to a research-backed discipline with academic conferences, peer-reviewed papers, and established best practices.

What We're Building

At Enception.AI, we're committed to maintaining this research-practice connection. Our work involves:

1. Research: Investigating AI content selection mechanisms 2. Tools: Building systems to measure and improve AI visibility 3. Education: Sharing insights through content like our comprehensive GEO guides 4. Services: Helping businesses implement GEO strategies effectively

The news coverage this week validates this approach and motivates us to push further.

If you're reading this and wondering how to begin optimizing for generative engines, here's a practical starting point:

Step 1: Audit Your Current AI Visibility

Start by understanding how often and in what contexts AI systems mention your brand:

Step 2: Understand Your Entity Profile

AI systems need to understand what your business is and why it's authoritative:

Step 3: Structure Content for Retrievability

Make your content easier for AI systems to retrieve and cite:

Step 4: Monitor and Iterate

GEO is an ongoing process, not a one-time fix:

Step 5: Invest in Capabilities

As we emphasized in our analysis of why GEO will persist, this isn't a temporary need - it's a fundamental shift. Build internal capabilities or partner with specialists who understand these systems deeply.

For businesses ready to take GEO seriously, our team at Enception.AI offers comprehensive audits, strategy development, and implementation support. Contact us to discuss your specific needs.

This week's news coverage - in SF Bay Area Times and Montreal Times - marks a milestone in the evolution of Generative Engine Optimization.

What was once a niche concern for early adopters is now mainstream enough for major publications to cover. What was once experimental is now backed by serious research. What was once speculative is now supported by institutional investors.

The Transition is Happening Now

We're at the 2002-2005 inflection point for GEO - the moment when it transitions from experimental to essential. Companies that build capabilities now will have significant advantages. Those that wait will find themselves playing catch-up in an increasingly crowded field.

This Isn't About Gaming Systems

As the research coverage makes clear, GEO isn't about manipulation. It's about understanding how AI systems evaluate and surface information, then structuring your content to communicate more effectively within those systems.

Good GEO, like good SEO before it, serves both the systems and the users. It makes information more accessible, more verifiable, and more valuable.

What's Next

We'll continue pushing forward on multiple fronts:

The coverage this week validates our approach and energizes us for the work ahead.

If you're interested in learning more about GEO, start with our comprehensive guide or explore specific topics like AI search optimization and ChatGPT search strategies.

The future of digital visibility is being shaped right now. We're excited to be part of defining it.