SEO Explained

How Does Google Rank AI Generated Content In 2025?

by Mark Temte, Staff Writer

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Google’s stance on AI-generated content has evolved over time, with the search algorithm now focusing less on how content is created and more on its quality, relevance, and alignment with user needs. Here’s how AI-generated content is currently perceived and how it impacts Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) overall:

 

Google’s Focus on Quality (E-E-A-T)

Google’s primary focus in evaluating content is its adherence to the principles of Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness (E-E-A-T). These factors determine the overall quality of the content and, by extension, how well it ranks in search engine results. AI-generated content is not inherently penalized; however, if it lacks these critical elements, it will likely struggle to perform well.

  • Experience: Google assesses whether the creator of the content has firsthand experience or practical knowledge of the subject matter. For example, product reviews that include real-world usage insights or detailed problem-solving tutorials often rank higher. AI-generated content might falter here unless paired with human insight or real-world examples.
  • Expertise: Expertise ensures that content creators have specialized knowledge. AI tools can mimic expertise by aggregating information, but they may lack the nuanced understanding that comes from years of specialization. Supplementing AI-generated content with expert insights, citations, and deep analysis ensures it meets Google’s standards.
  • Authoritativeness: Authoritative content often comes from established voices or organizations. A website’s domain authority and reputation also play a role here. Content generated by AI tools needs to be aligned with credible sources and hosted on well-regarded platforms to be seen as authoritative.
  • Trustworthiness: This is arguably the most challenging element for AI-generated content. Trustworthy content relies on accurate, up-to-date, and verifiable information. Google is vigilant about combating misinformation, and AI tools can occasionally produce outdated or incorrect content. Human verification and editing are crucial in ensuring AI-generated content meets this requirement.

By focusing on creating content that excels in these four areas, you can ensure that any AI-generated content that you create not only avoids penalties but also thrives in Google’s search results.  Is is also suggested by most experts in the industry that any AI content that you do generate, has a good mix of user created content to go with it.  Basically speaking, if AI content is all that you are generating, and no human intervention is going into it, chances are, you are not meeting the guidelines for quality content… and the content you are generating is duplicated elsewhere on the web.

 


Potential Challenges With AI-Generated Content

While AI tools like ChatGPT, Jasper, Gemini, and others have revolutionized content creation, they also come with limitations and challenges that can negatively impact performance in search rankings.  Some of these challenges include:

  • Risk Of Duplication: AI tools often scrape large datasets to generate content. This process can lead to unintentional duplication, where the output mirrors existing material. Google’s algorithm can penalize duplicate or thin content, lowering rankings. To mitigate this, AI-generated content should always be run through plagiarism detection tools and edited to add unique value.
  • Shallow Insights: AI tools are skilled at synthesizing data but often fail to produce in-depth, critical, or unique perspectives. For example, content generated solely by AI may summarize existing information without offering actionable takeaways or fresh insights. To overcome this, businesses can combine AI-generated drafts with human expertise to add depth and originality.
  • Language and Tone Issues: While AI tools can mimic conversational or professional tones, they may sometimes create text that feels unnatural or robotic. Google’s natural language processing algorithms can detect such issues, potentially downgrading poorly written content. Ensuring the text feels human, with a natural flow and relevant anecdotes, is essential.
  • Ethical Concerns: AI tools can unintentionally produce biased or inappropriate content if their training data includes such patterns. Businesses must ensure content aligns with ethical guidelines and avoids controversy.

Addressing these challenges proactively ensures that AI-generated content aligns with Google’s quality standards and delivers a positive user experience.  AI also has a tendency to often come up with completely wrong answers or a percentage of content with inaccurate information.  This goes back to the EEAT mentioned above.  Any AI related content that you generate should be proofed and edited for accuracy along with overall readability.   The blogs and pages that most of us like to read the most are compelling, and generally written by someone from experiences. In other words, put some heart into it.

 


Impact On SERPs

AI-generated content, when properly utilized, can significantly influence a website’s position in SERPs. However, its impact largely depends on how well the content aligns with Google’s quality and user intent guidelines.  I know… I feel like I am repeating myself.  This cannot be overstated.

  • Better Content, Better Rankings: AI tools are powerful allies in creating content that ranks well. They can help optimize headlines, meta descriptions, and content structures for better readability and SEO performance. For instance, AI can identify trending topics and relevant keywords, allowing you to craft timely and optimized pieces.  Ai is fantastic for generating ideas.
  • User Signals Are Key: Google’s algorithm increasingly relies on user behavior to evaluate content performance. Click-through rates, bounce rates, and time spent on a page are all signals of content quality. Nothing has really changed there for years.  AI-generated content that fails to engage users—either because it lacks depth or does not address user queries effectively—will likely suffer in rankings.  This goes for user generated content as well.
  • Penalties For Low-Quality Content: Google’s continuous fight against low-quality, auto-generated content means that websites relying on unedited or spammy AI content are at risk of ranking penalties. You must ensure that content is polished, coherent, and tailored to your audience to avoid ranking issues.  No one likes bad or irrelevant content.

To maximize the positive impact of AI-generated content on SERPs, you should focus on creating engaging, user-centered pieces that leverage AI for efficiency but rely on human insight for quality and authenticity.  That makes for excellent content.

 


Best Practices For Using AI In Content Creation

The key to success with AI-generated content lies in implementing best practices that ensure its quality, accuracy, and alignment with SEO objectives.

  • Human Oversight: Always review and edit AI-generated content. ALWAYS.  While AI tools excel at creating drafts, human intervention ensures the content resonates with the intended audience. This includes fine-tuning tone, adding personal anecdotes, and verifying facts.
  • Incorporate Unique Insights: AI tools can help with data aggregation, but they cannot replicate human creativity or unique perspectives. Pairing AI-generated content with user created content, real-world examples, expert quotes, or case studies adds authenticity and depth to any content creation.
  • Optimize For SEO: AI tools are excellent for generating keyword-rich content. However, avoid over-optimization, which can make the content feel unnatural or robotic and spammy. Focus on incorporating keywords naturally and enhancing readability with clear formatting, bullet points, and concise paragraphs.  Properly structured and consistent content appeals to Google, and ranks well overall.
  • Focus On Value: The primary goal of any content should be to provide value and quality to the reader. AI tools should be used to create content that solves problems, answers questions, or provides in-depth insights, rather than simply filling space.  Bloat content will not only not rank well, in most cases will cause overall ranking to decrease, and with recent Google core updates, will result in penalties.

By following simple AI best practices, you can use AI tools effectively while maintaining high content quality and achieving strong performance in the  SERPs.  Always think about your content in terms of what you personally would want to read.  If you wanted to read content that is solely generated by artificial intelligence, you could just as easily ask ChatGPT.

 


The Future of AI In Content Creation

Over the last few years, AI tools have rapidly become indispensable for content creators, but their future role will likely be as collaborators rather than replacements for human writers.  Right now it is still an AI wild west.  As things become more structured and change, so will content creators.  At some point, good, bad or indifferent, the Internet will become much more AI generated and at some point we will no longer be able to recognize what is user created content versus everything else.  My belief is that it will become AI generated content that uses other AI generated content for source material.  But I am still optimistic that in the end, AI will always need to get it’s source material from a human.  The Terminator timeline is still at least a few years away… or is it?

  • Hybrid Content Creation: The best results come from blending AI-generated drafts with human expertise. AI can handle repetitive tasks, such as content formatting or keyword optimization, while humans focus on creativity and strategic thinking.
  • Personalization At Scale: AI tools will increasingly be used to create personalized content for specific audience segments. For example, AI can generate localized content or tailor messaging based on user preferences, creating a more engaging experience.
  • Advancements In AI: As AI tools improve, they will likely become better at understanding context, tone, and nuance. This means fewer errors and more sophisticated content. However, human oversight will remain critical to maintain quality and ensure ethical standards.
  • Structured Data and Semantic SEO: AI tools will play a larger role in creating structured data and optimizing content for semantic search. This includes leveraging schema markup to improve visibility in rich snippets and featured results.

The future of AI in content creation is bright, but success will depend on how well content creators integrate these tools into their workflows and maintain a focus on quality, creativity, and user satisfaction.  AI-generated content can perform well in SERPs if it is high-quality, human-edited, and aligned with user needs. However, over-reliance on AI without oversight can lead to penalties or poor performance with Google and your website visitors. By blending AI with human expertise, businesses can create impactful content that ranks effectively and continues to rank effectively moving forward.

 

Here Are 15 Key Takeaways For This Article:

  • Google prioritizes content quality over origin, focusing on how well content aligns with user intent, regardless of whether it is human-written or AI-generated.
  • E-E-A-T principles (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) are critical for ranking AI-generated content, ensuring it meets high standards of value and accuracy.
  • AI-generated content can struggle with demonstrating experience, as it often lacks real-world insights or first-hand expertise. Supplementing with human input is essential.
  • Shallow, generic AI content is unlikely to rank well, as Google prioritizes in-depth and unique information that adds real value to users.
  • Duplicate content risks are significant with AI tools, as they may unintentionally produce repetitive or overly similar material, which can harm rankings.
  • User engagement metrics like time on page, click-through rates, and bounce rates heavily influence Google’s ranking of AI-generated content.
  • Low-quality or spammy AI content can lead to penalties, making human editing and quality assurance essential for maintaining good SERP performance.
  • Blending AI with human creativity yields the best results, as AI can handle repetitive tasks, while humans add depth, context, and nuance.
  • AI-generated content should be optimized for SEO, but over-optimization (e.g., keyword stuffing) can lead to penalties. Natural integration of keywords is critical.
  • Personalization and audience segmentation are increasingly important, with AI enabling tailored content creation for specific user groups.
  • Video and multimedia content continue to rise in importance, as search engines favor diverse formats, including video, in SERPs.
  • Structured data and schema markup are essential for AI-created content, helping search engines better understand context and increasing visibility in rich snippets.
  • AI advancements will improve content quality, but human oversight will remain necessary to ensure ethical standards, originality, and user-centricity.
  • Businesses using AI tools need robust fact-checking processes, as AI tools can sometimes produce inaccurate or outdated information.
  • The future of content creation lies in hybrid models, where AI supports efficiency, and human writers ensure creativity, engagement, and strategic alignment with SEO goals.

 

 

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About The Author
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Mark Temte

Mark Temte is a seasoned expert in the SEO industry, with extensive experience developing and executing impactful search engine optimization strategies for diverse brands. Over the years, he has mastered the art of driving organic growth by implementing data-driven techniques, optimizing on-page and technical SEO, and crafting content that resonates with target audiences. Mark’s in-depth knowledge spans keyword research, competitive analysis, and advanced link-building strategies, all of which he combines to help clients achieve top search rankings and sustainable visibility. Known for his innovative and results-focused approach, Mark continues to empower businesses by demystifying SEO and aligning strategies with long-term digital marketing goals.