ELI RESEARCH · METHOD ONLY, NO RESULTS PUBLISHED
State of B2B AI Search 2026
Which brands get recommended, which sources support answers, how stable are recommendations, and how different are engines?
Eli is currently collecting and validating the first State of B2B AI Search dataset. This page intentionally does not publish preliminary percentages or rankings before the observation set is complete.
RELEASE STANDARD
Methodology is publishable before findings are.
Eli can publish the question universe, schema, definitions and quality controls before a benchmark release. It will only publish an aggregate when the underlying observations are complete, reviewable and described with their coverage and limitations. Until then, this page makes no performance, ranking or customer-outcome claim.
What this report will answer
It will address recommendations, citations, source types/concentration, engine disagreement, repeated/paraphrase stability and buyer-stage patterns.
Study design
Versioned prompt universe, controlled paraphrases, fixed buyer intents, multiple engines, captured raw answers, normalized brands, extracted citations and repeated observations where required.
Final report structure
When data exists: recommendation behavior, citation behavior, engine differences, stability and commercial implications. Every chart will link methodology, raw table and version notes.
What this report cannot prove
It cannot prove model ranking factors, one-page recommendation causality, business impact without downstream evidence or universal behavior outside the sample.
FAQ
Questions about the research design and release boundary.
Is this independent research?
First-party Eli research with transparent methodology and limits.
Will vendor rankings be published?
Only if sample and methodology justify them.
Can I download data?
Tables will be exposed where appropriate.
How often updates?
Use explicit release dates, not unoperationalized cadence.
Can I cite it?
Yes with release/version attribution.
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Explore the methodology
The State of B2B AI Search 2026 is Eli's flagship research report on recommendation behavior, citation patterns, source concentration, engine differences and stability across commercially relevant B2B buyer questions. No findings should appear until the dataset has been completed and quality-checked.
Explore the methodologyAbout Eli · facts checked 20 October 2026
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