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Adobe bolsters AI SEO with planned $1.9B Semrush acquisition
AI is eating web traffic. The Adobe-Semrush merger might help marketers adapt their strategies.
Adobe plans to acquire Semrush, a search engine optimization tool, in an all-cash deal expected to close in the first half of 2026, valued at $1.9 billion.
The science of content optimization is rapidly evolving as AI-powered search engines from several companies, including Google, OpenAI and Perplexity, offer summarizations of content instead of directing browsers to a website page. Optimizing content to influence its performance within search engines is referred to as both AI search optimization (AISO) and what Adobe calls generative engine optimization (GEO).
The vocabulary to describe these processes is evolving rapidly. Constellation Research analyst Liz Miller said early adopters now generally refer to GEO as the back-end preparation of content to make it more discoverable. An emerging third term, "answer engine optimization," describes how that content is presented to the person who wrote the prompt.
Both GEO and answer engine optimization can be shaped by content authors, provided they have the right intelligence, which tools such as a combined Adobe-Semrush and its competitors might offer.
Few companies are working on both aspects of marketing for generative AI, Miller said. But an Adobe-Semrush merger would make a formidable combination in these early days of content optimization for generative AI.
"A brand intelligence layer is going to shape how 'AI as a UI' happens and provide the where and the how to fix it," Miller said, adding that these concepts are still in their infancy. "Think of the earliest days of digital, web and search. That's where we are [with generative AI and LLMs].
GEO evolves marketing workflows
Adobe's acquisition will combine Semrush, a popular tool among marketers for processes such as keyword research and site optimization, with Adobe's marketing platform. Semrush would enhance Adobe's GEO capabilities, which are already available in LLM Optimizer, released in June. Semrush also brings numerous tools for search engine marketing -- the ad side of search -- including analysis that reveals competitors' keyword, paid search and backlink strategies.
Generative AI is reshaping brand visibility, said Anil Chakravarthy, president of Adobe's Digital Experience Business, in a press release. The strategic combination of Adobe and Semrush will provide marketers with more insights and capabilities to increase their digital discoverability, said Bill Wagner, Semrush CEO.
Semrush claims to be the driver behind 33% year-over-year annual recurring revenue growth for its enterprise customers in its most recent quarter. Some of its blue-chip customers include Amazon, JPMorganChase and TikTok. That might explain in part why Adobe paid a 77% premium over the stock's closing price before the planned acquisition was announced.
Having good intelligence to improve brand content engagement in LLM search is just half the equation for marketers, Miller said. To act on that intelligence, most will have to change their current content workflows, which could prove difficult for some organizations.
"It will fundamentally change how a marketer thinks of content -- from its structure to how it's answered to where it's placed," Miller said.
Don Fluckinger is a senior news writer for Informa TechTarget. He covers customer experience, digital experience management and end-user computing. Got a tip? Email him.
