Skip to content
FRFree GEO audit

Observatory · Sector

How AI engines recommend B2B software and tech

For B2B software and tech buying questions, 33.9% of the sources AI engines cite are rankings and comparison pages, up to 45.7% on Copilot. Data: 145,731 answers, the largest sector in the Observatory, July 12 to October 11, 2026.

Get my free GEO auditBook a 30-min call

Updated

145,731

answers analysed

88%

ai overview displayed

34%

rankings among sources

6.9

sources per answer

Types of sources cited : B2B software and tech
Other sites58%Rankings and comparisons34%Reviews and directories4%YouTube2%Forums (Reddit, Quora)1%
Share of rankings among cited sources, by engine (B2B software and tech)
Microsoft Copilot46%Perplexity43%Google AI Overviews34%ChatGPT26%
Searches where Google displays an AI Overview, by sector
Coaching and advisory92%Marketing agencies89%B2B software and tech88%Finance and wealth management83%Retail and fashion78%Events and corporate retreats77%Health, beauty and fitness76%Real estate67%Travel and leisure54%

B2B software and tech is the largest sector in the Observatory, with 145,731 answers from ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Perplexity and Copilot. Brand sites, media and blogs make up 58.3% of cited sources, rankings and comparisons 33.9%, reviews and directories 4.3%, YouTube 2.1% and forums 1.0%.

Rankings weigh 45.7% of Copilot sources, 43.4% for Perplexity, 34.3% for Google AI Overviews and 26.1% for ChatGPT. Perplexity also cites review platforms and directories for 8.1% of its sources: software review profiles count.

Google AI Overviews appears on 88.2% of B2B software searches, and YouTube makes up 9.2% of its sources there, with forums at 2.3%. Demos and tutorials on YouTube are a direct path into AI Overviews for software vendors.

Answers are long: a median of 322 words overall and 441 on Copilot, with 6.9 sources per answer. ChatGPT cites at least one source in 95.0% of its software answers. For tech buyers, also track Claude, which takes 88.1% of its sources from rankings across the Observatory.

Method

406,626 AI answers collected every day from July 12, 2026 to October 11, 2026 on over 1,700 purchase-intent questions tracked by Archipel (mostly in French, plus the United States and the Netherlands). ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Perplexity and Copilot: Profound data. Claude and Gemini: Peec AI data. Sources are classified automatically from their address and title. Figures are aggregated: no brand or client is published. Free to reuse with a link to this page.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Which sources do AI engines cite for B2B software?
For B2B software, AI engines cite brand sites, media and blogs for 58.3% of sources, rankings and comparisons for 33.9% and reviews and directories for 4.3%, based on 145,731 answers.
Do review platforms matter for B2B software in AI search?
Yes, review platforms and directories make up 8.1% of Perplexity sources for B2B software, and 4.3% across all engines in the sector.
Does Google AI Overviews cite YouTube for software searches?
Yes, YouTube makes up 9.2% of the sources Google AI Overviews cites on B2B software buying searches, where AI Overviews appears 88.2% of the time.
Which AI engine relies most on rankings for B2B software?
Copilot relies most on rankings for B2B software, with 45.7% of its sources, ahead of Perplexity (43.4%), Google AI Overviews (34.3%) and ChatGPT (26.1%).

Shall we get started?

Free GEO audit: your rank on ChatGPT, Claude and Google AI Overviews, your competitors and your first actions. Reply within half a business day.

Get my free GEO auditBook a 30-min call