What this means
Generation grounded in retrieved external information.
Historical record
Perplexity introduces Q2D-Web for large-scale retrieval evaluation in agentic RAG
The visible user prompt is not necessarily the query a source competes for. AI visibility therefore depends on several distinct stages: query reformulation, first-stage retrieval, ranking, evidence selection, and eventual citation.
Google publishes official guidance for generative AI Search visibility
Practitioners gained first-party guidance separating verified requirements from speculative AEO/GEO tactics.
Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) is formalized in research
RAG is one of the core technical patterns behind modern AI search, source retrieval and citation behavior.