Your next buyer is an agent.
If the AI doesn't shortlist you, the human never hears your name. This is what it reads, what it skips and what still gets you picked.
of B2B software buyers now start their research in an AI assistant like ChatGPT or Claude, not in Google. A year ago it was 29%.
Source: G2, survey of 1,076 buyers, March 2026The shortlist moved into the chat window.
Buyers ask an assistant first and visit your site later, if at all. Three numbers that explain the shift.
rely on AI assistants for software research. About seven months earlier it was 60%.
G2, 1,076 buyers, Mar 2026picked a different vendor than planned because of what an AI assistant told them. One in three bought from a brand they didn't know.
G2, Mar 2026of llms.txt files got zero requests in a month. Agents read your real pages, so make those readable.
Ahrefs, 137,210 domains, Jun 2026How an assistant builds a shortlist.
It reads what is public, weighs what it can verify and names two or three vendors. Everyone else is invisible.
- The buyer asks One sentence with a need, a size and a budget.
- The agent reads Vendor pages, reviews, forums, comparisons.
- It names a few The ones it could describe with confidence.
Notes
- How AI assistants build a vendor shortlist: What they read, in what order, and what makes them name you.
- llms.txt: what the server logs actually show: The file most guides recommend, and the data on who reads it.
- Write your pricing page for an agent: Ranges, scope and limits a machine can quote back.