“AI has superpowers, but so do humans. The real winners will be those who combine the two.”

This week on The AI Report, we’re joined by SEO expert, Tom Winter, founder of SEOwind—an AI tool that creates quality SEO content that ranks—who discusses how AI is changing SEO (particularly with the introduction of AI search engines) and gives tips on how to use AI to rank #1 on Google.

🎙️ Listen to the full episode here

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🔓 The key parts

1. 🧬 The evolution of SEO with AI

2.  🤖 The future of SEO and AI agents

3. 🔍 How to rank higher on Google

4. 💼 The impact of AI on the workforce

Read Time: 5 minutes

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH TOM WINTER

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🧬 The evolution of SEO with AI

Liam: “How has the SEO landscape changed in the past two years with the introduction of AI? What's now relevant that wasn't in the past? What's now irrelevant that was relevant in the past?”

Tom: "First thing, a lot has changed…second thing, not much has changed! Google still wants to bring the best quality and the best value to the end user. That hasn’t changed over 25 years. People say the algorithms are changing everything, but they’re not. Google is becoming a better referee, maybe, but the rules are the same. The end goal of Google is the same."

Tom: “But we now have AI which we have to treat as a tool. As a colleague, best friend, and teammate. It will help us get better results, a better ROI, and better content. We can analyze more data at a glance, find new keywords, predict new keywords, trends, and a lot more."

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— — — —

🤖 The future of SEO and AI agents

Liam: "You mentioned that two years ago, you’d tell your daughters to become developers. But now, you're saying junior and mid-level developers might not be needed anymore. But we still need people at the very top to discern what’s good and what’s not. But how do you get to the top if you never start at the bottom? It's a catch-22."

Tom: "I don't know what will happen, but if I can be honest, I don't think my kids will have a job. That's my opinion. They still have to learn how to solve problems, and so that’s one skill that I will teach them: All the rest doesn't matter.”

Liam: "If you’ve never had to manually think through a process yourself, you’re just going to rely on AI agents to do it. But then you’re losing the ability to think critically. Independent thought is becoming a superpower. But talk to me about what you foresee for SEO. How will the landscape change with the current AI tools and with new inventions that come out as well?”

Tom: “I’ve developed a tool, that helps write articles based on research, as for us, 80% of the work is research. Writing the article is the last 20%. AI can now help us analyze huge amounts of data, structure it, and use it in ways that weren’t possible before. That’s the real shift."

Tom: "But providing the context and all the information that AI needs not to hallucinate, not to create fluff, is the hard part. An AI workflow is simple. It follows an 'if this, then that' process, but AI agents don’t follow a linear process. They are problem solvers that figure out their own paths to a solution, using different tools and models in real time. This is where 2025 is heading. We’re moving past chatbots and into systems that make decisions on their own."

— — — —

🔍 How to rank higher on Google

Liam: "How can we become Google's best friend? How do I communicate with Google to rank the highest? What does Google need to see to push my content to the top?"

Tom: "Simplified, I would say authority and the content. Think of it like this: You build the best palace in the middle of the desert. But if there are no roads leading to it, no one will visit. So basically, content is important—the palace is the content we’re producing—and the other thing is authority. Google lets you into small ponds first—small keyword niches—before expanding your reach."

Liam: "I get the concept, but how does Google actually measure authority? What’s happening in the backend?"

Tom: "If you search for something, visit a page, and then immediately return to Google, what does that tell Google? You didn’t find what you were looking for. That’s a simple but powerful signal. Engagement metrics like time spent on a page, backlinks, citations—all of these matter."

Tom: "Google is looking for content that’s valuable, data-backed, and demonstrates real expertise. If an article is full of fluff, doesn’t link to sources, and doesn’t provide unique insights, it won’t rank well."

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💼 The impact of AI on the workforce

Liam: "We are moving into a world where being mediocre at something isn’t good enough anymore. Companies will be built lean, with a few top experts and AI automating everything else. If you’re just getting by, you’re going to have a problem."

Tom: "Some companies say, 'If we implement AI, we’ll have to fire 50% of our staff.' My response? If you don’t implement AI, you’ll have to fire 100% in a year or two. AI isn’t about replacing people—it’s about making businesses more competitive.”

Tom: "People expect AI to be perfect right away. If it’s not, they give up. But look at it this way—if AI cuts down your workflow from 8 hours to 1.5 hours, even if the result isn’t perfect, isn’t that worth it?"

Liam: "The people who succeed will be the ones who are patient, who experiment, who take the time to learn. AI isn’t a magic button—it’s a tool. And knowing how to use that tool will be the difference between success and failure."

➡️ KEY TAKEAWAYS

✔️ AI hasn’t changed Google’s core goals—but it has changed how SEO is done.

✔️ AI agents are the future—but they raise questions about career development.

✔️ SEO success requires quality content and strong authority.

✔️ AI is reshaping the job market, and those who adapt will thrive.