The convergence of artificial intelligence and search engine optimization (SEO) is presenting new opportunities, and challenges, for business owners. With recent advancements showcased in Google's Gemini 3 release and Adobe's acquisition of Semrush, the landscape of digital visibility is being reshaped.
For years, Semrush has been a lifeline for entrepreneurs like me, offering data that tracks keyword performance and competitor strategies. Adobe's decision to purchase Semrush for $1.9 billion opens up possibilities but also raises critical questions about access, cost, and integration. Meanwhile, Google’s Gemini 3 introduces a more dynamic search experience, designed to respond to complex user intentions with interactive tools rather than static text answers. As someone who closely watches market shifts, I see both innovation and caution flags. Here's what you need to know.
1. What Google's Gemini 3 Brings to the Table
Gemini 3 represents Google's next phase in AI-driven search. Unlike traditional search methods, where the results are static text snippets or simple website links, this update delivers interactive outputs, calculators, simulations, and comparison tables, directly within the search result page. This format can shrink the need for users to click on external websites entirely, impacting organic traffic.
Key features include:
- Dynamic Queries: Gemini 3 adapts based on user context, delivering multimedia elements tailored to each question. Notably, this creates challenges for startups that depend on organic traffic.
- Pro & Paid Versions: Tools exclusive to Gemini AI Pro subscribers could limit general accessibility. Entrepreneurs may need to reimagine content strategies to capitalize on this shift.
- Impact on SEO Tactics: The usual "optimize and rank" formula must now consider user engagement with non-clickable elements.
To visualize the scale of rethinking required, think of branded coffee, if your product is already being displayed by Gemini, your next move is not to secure visibility, but to ensure it’s the preferred choice within that visibility.
2. Adobe Buys Semrush, Why It Matters
The $1.9 billion deal underscores Adobe's intent to integrate SEO directly into its Experience Cloud tools. This aligns data from SEO efforts with broader marketing strategies, offering a single platform for business analysis. But integration comes at a cost, and one potential fallout is smaller businesses being priced out of complex analytics.
Key takeaways:
- Unified Insights: SEO and customer data in one dashboard could simplify reporting, if you’re already an Adobe subscriber. Otherwise, it’s an added subscription and cost to evaluate.
- Shift Toward Enterprise: Adobe’s focus on multi-channel experiences will deepen, with Semrush offering data that extends visibility tracking into generative AI platforms (such as OpenAI or Gemini itself).
- API Changes Ahead? Many expect that Semrush tools we know today may become exclusive features within Adobe’s ecosystem.
If you’re a small business or startup without Adobe Creative Suite subscriptions, prepare for potential challenges accessing the SEO capabilities you value.
3. How to Stay Ahead
Both Gemini 3 and the Adobe-Semrush acquisition reveal a future where brands must optimize for visibility in hybrid spaces: traditional SEO, generative AI, and device-driven ecosystems. Here’s how to navigate it:
Tips for Emerging Entrepreneurs
- Monitor Algorithm Shifts: Keep up with changes in how search platforms display information. Tools like Google Search Console now offer custom annotations, which allow you to track and document when significant changes occurred.
- Focus on Semantic Authority: Keywords are becoming less important than topic relevance. Work on developing content clusters that align with user intent rather than single terms.
- Invest in Brand Identity: As AI takes charge of organizing answers, a strong brand becomes your anchor for visibility. This is the time to invest in creating recognizable, trust-inducing content.
- Deploy Diversified Tools: Instead of relying on a single SEO service, diversify your toolkit. Platforms like Miro and Figma offer integration-friendly ways to ideate and track digital strategies.
4. Common Mistakes to Avoid
Navigating this new environment requires recalibration. Here’s where things often go wrong:
- Ignoring Paid SEO Channels: With AI altering how results appear, organic methods alone risk becoming obsolete. Paid promotion in AI-focused tools can fill these gaps.
- Failing to Reassess Data Sources: If Semrush’s integration with Adobe threatens accessibility, decide whether migrating tools or absorbing their costs is your better strategy.
- Overlooking Customer Journeys: New layouts in Gemini search mean fewer link clicks. Compensating by building holistic brand ecosystems across social, AI, and web touchpoints matters more than ever.
5. Breaking Down Expert Opinions
Take, for instance, Eli Schwartz, a leader in the SEO field, who described this acquisition as a doubling down on brand visibility in agentic AI systems. He rightly frames this as a pivotal moment: AI isn’t only determining what people see but how they experience it.
From Mordy Oberstein’s LinkedIn analysis, there’s an acknowledgment that Google’s move with Gemini 3 alters ad-based monetization models. This introduces uncertainty for smaller players dependent on traffic for survival.
For marketers, the convergence of these two trends means recalibrating budgetary approaches and preparing to coach clients on the shift.
Conclusion
What can entrepreneurs like you take from all this? The rules of engagement have evolved. In practical terms, this means taking search strategy beyond site clicks. Your goal isn’t simply getting users to your homepage anymore but addressing user needs within their preferred platforms. This includes AI-driven search tools and cloud ecosystems like Adobe’s.
As a founder of a startup myself, I’ve seen how adapting to these sea changes isn’t just a survival tool, it’s a growth strategy. Make data-driven, smart decisions about how to align your vision with these evolving tools. And, importantly, don’t wait. This is the start of a new paradigm for digital competition. Better get moving now.
FAQ on the SEO and AI Revolution: Google Gemini 3 & Adobe's Semrush Acquisition
1. What is the significance of Google Gemini 3 in SEO?
Google Gemini 3 introduces dynamic, multimedia-based search outputs instead of static answers. This shift impacts organic traffic by reducing click-throughs while enhancing on-page user experiences with tools like calculators and comparison tables. Dive deeper into Gemini 3
2. How is Adobe leveraging Semrush after its acquisition?
Adobe integrates Semrush's extensive SEO data into its Experience Cloud, aiming to merge search insights with wider business intelligence tools for enhanced brand visibility across AI-driven platforms. Find out more about Adobe's Semrush acquisition
3. What are key challenges for entrepreneurs with Gemini 3 AI Mode?
Entrepreneurs face reduced clicks on organic results with Gemini’s dynamic layouts. This requires rethinking strategies to focus on user engagement directly within AI-controlled spaces. Explore challenges confronted by startups
4. How has SEO reporting evolved with Search Console updates?
Google’s Search Console now allows branded queries filtering and custom annotations in performance reports, providing better timelines and context for brand discovery patterns. Learn about branded queries and annotations
5. How does Gemini 3 reshape user behavior?
Gemini 3 pushes AI search toward robust visual tools, shifting focus from simple answers to engaging, multi-layered interactions directly within the search results page. Understand user behavior shifts
6. What does Semrush’s sale mean for SEO accessibility?
With Semrush becoming an Adobe brand, there may be increased pricing or restricted access for non-Adobe users, making some of its SEO data harder to obtain independently. Explore implications for users post-acquisition
7. Can startups survive reduced organic traffic due to AI search roles?
Startups must diversify their digital tactics by investing in brand identity and AI-compatible ecosystems, ensuring their presence in hybrid AI environments like Gemini and ChatGPT. Discover survival strategies for startups
8. How does Adobe’s Semrush integration benefit its existing tools?
Adobe plans to use Semrush to enhance its automation and analytics capabilities, offering marketers unified reporting across AI search layers like Gemini. Learn about Adobe's unified approach
9. What are expert predictions on AI search’s future direction?
Experts see AI search becoming more immersive, highlighting the need for brands to emphasize semantic authority and engagement over traditional keyword optimization. Check out expert insights from Mordy Oberstein
10. How should businesses recalibrate their tools amidst these changes?
Businesses are advised to adopt diversified toolkits, including collaboration platforms like Miro and Figma, to strengthen cross-channel SEO and AI strategies. Investigate tools for dynamic SEO adaptation
About the Author
Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
Violetta Bonenkamp's expertise in CAD sector, IP protection and blockchain
Violetta Bonenkamp is recognized as a multidisciplinary expert with significant achievements in the CAD sector, intellectual property (IP) protection, and blockchain technology.
CAD Sector:
- Violetta is the CEO and co-founder of CADChain, a deep tech startup focused on developing IP management software specifically for CAD (Computer-Aided Design) data. CADChain addresses the lack of industry standards for CAD data protection and sharing, using innovative technology to secure and manage design data.
- She has led the company since its inception in 2018, overseeing R&D, PR, and business development, and driving the creation of products for platforms such as Autodesk Inventor, Blender, and SolidWorks.
- Her leadership has been instrumental in scaling CADChain from a small team to a significant player in the deeptech space, with a diverse, international team.
IP Protection:
- Violetta has built deep expertise in intellectual property, combining academic training with practical startup experience. She has taken specialized courses in IP from institutions like WIPO and the EU IPO.
- She is known for sharing actionable strategies for startup IP protection, leveraging both legal and technological approaches, and has published guides and content on this topic for the entrepreneurial community.
- Her work at CADChain directly addresses the need for robust IP protection in the engineering and design industries, integrating cybersecurity and compliance measures to safeguard digital assets.
Blockchain:
- Violetta’s entry into the blockchain sector began with the founding of CADChain, which uses blockchain as a core technology for securing and managing CAD data.
- She holds several certifications in blockchain and has participated in major hackathons and policy forums, such as the OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum.
- Her expertise extends to applying blockchain for IP management, ensuring data integrity, traceability, and secure sharing in the CAD industry.
Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).
She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond, launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks and is building MELA AI to help local restaurants in Malta get more visibility online.
For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.