James LePage, Director of Engineering AI at Automattic and co-lead of the WordPress AI Team, shared his perspectives on key SEO considerations in the evolving AI landscape. As founder and co-lead of the WordPress Core AI Team, which oversees AI-related initiatives within WordPress—including how AI agents interact within its ecosystem—he offered insights into the future web shaped by AI agents and the SEO implications involved. **AI Agents and Infrastructure** LePage’s first point emphasizes that AI agents will operate using the existing web infrastructure common to search engines. The data these agents leverage is sourced from traditional search indexes. He states provocatively: “Agents will use the same infrastructure the web already has. - Search to discover relevant entities. - ‘Domain authority’ and trust signals to evaluate sources. - Links to traverse between entities. - Content to understand what each entity offers. It’s notable how much investment is flowing into AI optimization (AIO) and generative entity optimization (GEO) startups, given that these agents retrieve information via established search indexes. For example, ChatGPT uses Bing, Anthropic uses Brave, and Google uses Google. The underlying mechanics remain constant; what changes is the agent executing the search. ” **AI SEO Equals Longtail Optimization** LePage further asserts that optimizing for AI agents hinges on using schema structured data, semantic density, and strong interlinking across pages. He notes that much of what AIO and GEO companies market as AI-specific optimization essentially amounts to classic long-tail query optimization: “AI intermediaries synthesizing information require structured, accessible content—clear schemas, semantic density, and robust interlinking.

This is the core challenge facing most publishers. Despite billions invested in AIO and GEO, much AI optimization is fundamentally about long-tail keyword search optimization. ” **What Optimized Content Looks Like for AI Agents** LePage recommends content be intentionally organized for agent consumption—using structured markdown, semantic markup, and clarity. He describes ideal content as: - Prioritized presentations focusing on key information. - Rankings that distinguish authoritative from supplementary data. - Progressive disclosure of detail, providing summaries first with clear pathways to deeper content. Importantly, this content remains static—not conversational or dynamic—but designed for streamlined agent traversal. He compares it to a well-organized briefing versus a pile of documents: both contain the same data, but one is far more accessible for quickly grasping what’s offered. Paradoxically, LePage later predicts that in the agentic AI future, websites may become unnecessary—agents might rely simply on content (i. e. , a “pile of documents”) detached from traditional site structures. Yet he still underscores the need for structured content with clear hierarchical organization and interlinking to clarify relationships between documents, ensuring content clearly communicates its purpose. He anticipates future websites hosting AI agents that communicate with external agents, enabling flexible data presentation tailored to user needs, moving beyond the current notion of visiting a website. **The Evolution Toward Autonomous AI Agents** LePage outlines this evolution as a progression: - Currently, systems resemble multi-step web search (e. g. , Perplexity): gather content, synthesize, then present to users who make decisions. - Near term: users delegate specific tasks with explicit instructions; agents can act within defined authority (e. g. , purchases/bookings). - Longer term: agents become more autonomous, functioning like economic actors guided by standing rules. This progression increases autonomy but expands rather than removes human oversight—users define guidelines and review outcomes instead of approving every action. He emphasizes an immediate opportunity exists in making content agent-friendly by using structured markdown and semantic markup so it’s easily parsed and understood, even within static pages. Intentional organization greatly aids current agent workflows. LePage’s article, “Agents & The New Internet (3/5), ” offers valuable strategies to prepare publishers and developers for an agentic AI future where content and interaction paradigms shift significantly. *Featured image credit: Shutterstock/Blessed Stock*