Citation (AI)
An inline reference in an AI answer pointing to a source URL.
In the context of AEO, a citation is an inline reference inside an AI-generated answer pointing to a source URL. ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, and Gemini all show citations in various formats — small numbered links, source chips, or expandable reference sections.
Earning citations is the primary goal of AEO. Pages that are cited receive direct traffic from users clicking through, plus indirect brand visibility from being mentioned in the answer itself.