A fundamental shift is under way in how customers discover local businesses. It's no longer enough to rank on Google Search alone. Founders now need to think about how their businesses appear when people ask ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, or other AI platforms for recommendations.

That's the core insight from Myles Anderson, founder and CEO of BrightLocal, the local SEO software company he co-founded in Brighton in 2009. Anderson is now rolling out AI tools in 2026 that help businesses measure exactly how they appear when people ask artificial intelligence for local recommendations.

Why AI Search Matters for Local Visibility

Anderson explains the shift directly: "People now ask AI platforms for recommendations as well as searching on Google, so AI search is becoming part of local visibility."

For UK founders running local service businesses—whether plumbers, accountants, solicitors, or restaurants—this represents a new frontier in customer discovery.

BrightLocal now employs more than 300 people across offices in Brighton, Kraków, and Davao City, serving more than 100,000 businesses and agencies worldwide. The company passed $20m in revenue in 2025, the same year it launched fully managed local SEO services. In 2026, it is rolling out what Anderson calls "AI intelligence across the platform, starting with Local AI Visibility."

How the New Tools Work

The Local AI Visibility feature tracks how businesses appear in ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, and Google AI Mode. It measures visibility score, mention rate, share of voice, and average position.

As Anderson explains: "It shows how a business appears in ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews and Google AI Mode. It tracks visibility score, mention rate, share of voice and average position, so a business can see where it is being recommended and where it is not."

For UK founders, this data is actionable. If a business can see it's being recommended in one AI platform but not another, that raises questions about its online presence and how it appears in AI recommendations.

People and AI Working Together

Anderson frames AI adoption as complementary to, not replacing, human judgment and creativity. BrightLocal's philosophy, he says, is "people-first and AI-driven."

"While some think that using AI comes at the expense of people, I believe the opposite is true," Anderson states. "The best way to make an impact today is to use both. We use technology to strip away repetitive tasks so our team can focus on creative problem-solving, strategic thinking and building real connections."

This perspective is relevant to founders thinking about their own visibility strategies. Automation can handle data collection, monitoring, and reporting. But deciding which AI platforms matter most, interpreting what visibility gaps mean for your business, and crafting a response strategy—those remain human decisions.

Practical Advice for Founders

Anderson's broader philosophy on building business—"Start small, solve a real problem and put your people first"—carries through to his approach to visibility in an AI-driven world. For UK founders managing local or regional customer discovery, the implication is clear: don't chase every platform, but do track the ones that matter to your customers.

If your customers are asking AI tools for recommendations, you need to know how you show up in those answers.

Anderson himself wishes he'd moved faster earlier in his career. "If I could give my younger self one piece of advice, it would be to have more confidence in taking risks earlier," he reflects.