Glossary
Answer engine
An answer engine is a system that returns a written answer, such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok, Perplexity, or a Google AI Overview, rather than only a list of links.
A classic search engine returns links. An answer engine returns prose. Many products now do both. Google can show an AI Overview above the links. Perplexity answers with citations. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Grok answer in a thread and may browse or retrieve before they write.
The practical difference for a company is what the buyer reads. If they read a paragraph, the company needs a sentence that can live inside it. Ranking a URL still matters when the answer engine retrieves from the web. It is not the same outcome as being named.
Named North uses “answer engine” for any system whose reply can name a company. The optimization of that outcome is answer engine optimization.