By Lucinda Starr 

What is AI saying about your brand? While it’s impossible to fully control what Claude and ChatGPT say, you can play a key role in shaping the narrative. But most brands haven’t connected the dots yet.

As a founder, the single most effective thing you can do to boost your brand’s AI visibility is hiding in plain sight. It doesn’t involve hiring a PR agency or building out complex schema markup. It’s as simple as publishing on a platform you’re likely already using: LinkedIn. 

Here’s why. New research from SEMRush’s ‘LinkedIn AI Visibility Study 2026’ has found that LinkedIn is one of the most cited domains across AI models (ranking ahead of Wikipedia and YouTube). 

Plus, AI responses mirror the LinkedIn content they cite (showing semantic similarity ratios of ~0.57–0.60). In short, what you publish on LinkedIn directly shapes how AI describes your brand. 

Why LinkedIn is a primary trust signal for large language models  (LLMs)

Unlike traditional SEO (which is driven by backlinks and domain authority), answer engine optimisation (AEO) relies on different signals when deciding which sources to cite. 

LLMs are looking for fresh, original insights from credible authorities with deep topical expertise. 

On LinkedIn, authorship is clear and verifiable. Posts are easily traced back to a profile that spells out who you are, where you work and your industry expertise. 

The way information is shared matters, too. LinkedIn content is anchored in personal experience, often written in first-person and infused with anecdotes and original perspectives you won’t find anywhere else. 

Couple this with network interactions (how many people are liking and sharing your content) and highly extractable content formats (big on conversational language and clearly defined topics), and it’s not hard to see why LinkedIn posts are dominating in AI search results. 

What content is driving AI citations

Here’s where things get interesting. The type of content you share on LinkedIn affects how likely Perplexity, ChatGPT and Google AI Mode are to mention you. 

According to the same SEMRush study, LinkedIn articles are the clear winner in AI citations (accounting for 50 to 66 percent of cited LinkedIn content). It makes sense: long-form articles are dense, structured and indexable – rich enough to demonstrate expertise while offering a concise answer to a single, clearly defined topic. 

Unsurprisingly, reposts barely move the needle. Ninety-five percent of cited LinkedIn posts are original, with the top performers dedicated to sharing knowledge or insider advice. 

And you don’t need to go viral to see results. Nearly half of cited LinkedIn posts are by authors with around 2000 followers. What matters more is posting frequency: cited authors published at least five posts over the past four weeks. 

The takeaway? Focus on publishing regular content that answers high-intent questions your ideal customers are asking. 

How to activate your team as part of an AEO-led LinkedIn strategy

Founders are familiar with sharing thought leadership content on LinkedIn. But employees likely see the platform as a place to celebrate milestones and promotions.

Here’s what most founders are sleeping on: seeing their team as subject matter experts (SMEs) that can inform and influence how AI talks about their brand. 

The good news is there’s a simple fix. Pinpoint a handful of senior team members with deep expertise to act as spokespeople for your brand on LinkedIn. Set weekly content themes to anchor their posts to a single topic and provide flexible yet repeatable talking points to maintain consistency in messaging. 

Remember that employees give your LinkedIn strategy instant scalability. Next time you publish original research (like a report or whitepaper), why not get each team member to create a post to amplify it? This is the kind of social proof LLMs look for when seeking credible data to cite.  

And don’t forget about the comments section. AI tools look for meaningful discussion threads to inform citations, too. Consider activating your team to share thoughtful, insightful comments on LinkedIn posts relevant to your brand or industry. 

You may not control what AI says about your brand, but you can absolutely influence it strategically, one LinkedIn post and interaction at a time.

Lucinda Starr is the founder and director of content marketing agency Starr Studio

Image: Supplied

Read more: Four content marketing shifts brands need to prepare for in 2026