Article · · 6 min read
ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude and Alice: where AI answers come from and how to get into each
In short
ChatGPT answers from its own search (bot OAI-SearchBot), Google AI Overviews and Gemini from the Google index, Copilot from Bing, Perplexity and Claude from their own crawlers, and Alice from Yandex search. To be named by all of them, a site has to be open to each search bot, indexed in Google, Bing and Yandex, and answer the question with facts. Blocking training bots such as GPTBot does not remove you from AI search.
Every AI assistant answers from its own source: one searches the Google index, another the Bing index, a third its own crawler, Alice the Yandex index. That is why a business can be named by Perplexity and missing in ChatGPT. This page shows, assistant by assistant, where the answer comes from, which bot has to reach your site and what to set up first.
Related service GEO & AI search — from $1,000/moSEO services — from $500/mo
Figures and sources
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3 bots
OpenAI runs separate bots for ChatGPT search (OAI-SearchBot), user-requested visits (ChatGPT-User) and model training (GPTBot); each robots.txt setting is independent
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3 bots
Anthropic: ClaudeBot (training), Claude-User (pages a user asks about) and Claude-SearchBot (search); blocking the last two may reduce visibility in Claude's answers
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0 extra
Google: no additional requirements or special markup are needed to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode; SEO fundamentals apply
Source: Google Search Central — AI features and your website
In this article09
01Where each assistant gets its answers
| Assistant | Where the answer comes from | Bot that must reach your site | Set up first |
|---|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT | Model knowledge plus its own web search | OAI-SearchBot, ChatGPT-User | Open robots.txt, pages that answer the question |
| Google AI Overviews, AI Mode, Gemini | The Google index | Googlebot | SEO, Google Business Profile |
| Perplexity | Its own index plus pages fetched for the question | PerplexityBot, Perplexity-User | Open robots.txt, facts with sources |
| Claude | Model knowledge plus web search | Claude-SearchBot, Claude-User | Open robots.txt, clear facts |
| Microsoft Copilot | The Bing index | Bingbot | Bing Webmaster Tools, IndexNow |
| Alice and Yandex search with Neuro | Yandex search | YandexBot | Yandex Webmaster, Yandex Business |
The bots are the vendors' published names. The order of the rows is not a ranking.
02Training bots and search bots are different
Many sites block "AI bots" in robots.txt in one go and lose AI search with it. The vendors separate two jobs: bots that collect pages for training models and bots that find pages for answers right now.
- Training: GPTBot (OpenAI), ClaudeBot (Anthropic), Google-Extended (Google), CCBot (Common Crawl). Blocking them is your choice and does not remove you from AI search.
- Search and answers: OAI-SearchBot and ChatGPT-User, Claude-SearchBot and Claude-User, PerplexityBot and Perplexity-User, Googlebot, Bingbot, YandexBot. Block these and the assistant cannot read your page when a customer asks.
Check your robots.txt at yoursite.com/robots.txt. A line like "User-agent: * Disallow: /" or a block on the search bots above is worth fixing first. Some hosting firewalls and bot protection services block these bots too, without anything in robots.txt.
03ChatGPT
For questions about businesses, prices and places ChatGPT usually searches the web and lists its sources. Pages get into that search through OAI-SearchBot; when a user asks about a specific page, ChatGPT-User opens it.
- Allow OAI-SearchBot and ChatGPT-User in robots.txt and in your firewall.
- Write pages that answer one question each: what you do, where, for whom, for how much, how long it takes.
- Be present in the places ChatGPT often cites for local questions: directories, maps, review sites, articles about your niche.
04Google AI Overviews, AI Mode and Gemini
Google says there is nothing extra to do for AI Overviews and AI Mode: they are built from pages in Google's index that can appear with a snippet. In practice that means classic SEO decides.
- The page is indexed (check in Google Search Console) and allowed to show a snippet.
- The answer to the question is on the page as text, not only in an image or a video.
- A complete Google Business Profile for local questions: categories, hours, photos, reviews.
05Perplexity and Claude
Both search the web themselves. Perplexity keeps its own index (PerplexityBot) and opens pages for a specific question (Perplexity-User); Claude uses Claude-SearchBot for search and Claude-User for pages a user asks about. Both show sources, and both prefer pages with checkable facts.
- Allow PerplexityBot, Perplexity-User, Claude-SearchBot and Claude-User.
- Put numbers, dates and names on the page: prices "from", timelines, the areas you serve.
- Keep the same name, address and contacts everywhere, so the assistant is sure it is one business.
06Microsoft Copilot and Bing
Copilot answers from the Bing index. Many small sites are well indexed in Google and barely present in Bing, so they are missing in Copilot without knowing it.
- Add the site to Bing Webmaster Tools (it can import from Google Search Console) and submit the sitemap.
- Turn on IndexNow, so Bing learns about new and updated pages within minutes.
07Alice and Yandex search with Neuro
Yandex says its Neuro answers combine search with generative models, do not make things up and link to their sources. The sources come from Yandex search, so a site that Yandex does not rank rarely gets into an answer.
- Add the site to Yandex Webmaster and check that the pages are indexed.
- Fill in Yandex Business for local questions: address, hours, prices, photos.
- Answer the question directly at the top of the page; Neuro quotes short, clear fragments.
08How to check all of them in one go
Ask each assistant the question your customer would ask: "who does [your service] in [your city]". Do it in a new chat, without your account, and note who is named and which sources are shown. The sources tell you where each assistant looks.
Our free AI visibility check does this for you in about a minute: it asks an AI assistant about businesses like yours, shows whether you are named, where you rank in Google and which basics the site is missing, including blocked AI bots. The general guide is in How to get ChatGPT to recommend your business.
09Frequently asked questions
If I block GPTBot, will ChatGPT stop showing my site?
No. GPTBot collects pages for training. ChatGPT search uses OAI-SearchBot, and OpenAI says each setting is independent. Keep OAI-SearchBot allowed if you want to be found in ChatGPT.
Why does Perplexity name me while ChatGPT does not?
They search different indexes with different bots. Check that every search bot can reach the site, and that the site is indexed in Google and Bing, not only in one of them.
Do I need special markup for AI Overviews?
Google says no: there are no extra requirements. Structured data still helps search engines understand the page, but the answer itself has to be in the text.
Is Yandex important if my customers are not in Russia?
Only if your customers use Yandex or Alice. For most markets outside Russian-speaking countries Google, Bing and the assistants built on them matter more.
Can a GEO agency make an assistant name me?
No one can promise a specific mention. An agency can remove the obstacles (blocked bots, missing facts, weak presence on other sites) and track the result. That is what our GEO work is.
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