Profound vs Promptwatch

Profound raises $180M in Series D to build your AI Marketer

Profound has raised $180M to build the AI platform for marketing. CEO James Cadwallader writes why AI is creating more work for marketers, and how AI Marketer brings company context and agents together to help teams do it.

Estée Lauder Adopts GEO for AI Visibility

Estée Lauder has forged a global partnership with AI marketing platform Profound to enhance its brands' visibility in generative AI systems like ChatGPT and Gemini. The beauty conglomerate will leverage Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) to analyze and improve how its products appear in AI-driven search and answer platforms. This initiative, integrated into its One Operating Ecosystem, marks a significant step in treating AI visibility as a core marketing discipline, with content optimization across product pages, blogs, and YouTube channels. The partnership highlights the growing importance of AI assistants as new discovery channels for consumers.

• Estée Lauder partners with Profound, an AI marketing platform, for global GEO strategy.
• Focus is on analyzing and optimizing brand presence in AI systems like ChatGPT and Gemini.
• The initiative will be deployed across Estée Lauder's entire brand portfolio worldwide.

AI search marketing startup Profound raises $180M Series D at $1.8B valuation

Profound, a marketing software startup that helps brands appear in AI search results, announced a $180 million Series D funding round at a $1.8 billion valuation, just seven months after its $96 million Series C. The round was co-led by Sequoia and Kleiner Perkins, with participation from existing investors Lightspeed Venture Partners, Khosla Ventures, and South Park Commons. The company, which launched two years ago as an analytics platform, now focuses on generative engine optimization (GEO) and answer engine optimization (AEO), helping businesses understand how AI systems influence consumer brand discovery. Profound reports revenue growth of 3x in the past six months and serves over 1,000 enterprise customers, including Comcast, The Estée Lauder Companies, and Walmart. The funding will likely support expansion and product development in the rapidly growing AI search optimization space.

• Profound raised $180 million in Series D funding.
• The valuation is $1.8 billion, making Profound a unicorn.
• Sequoia and Kleiner Perkins co-led the round.

Reddit citations plunge in ChatGPT, raising advertiser concerns

Analysts report a sudden, steep fall in Reddit-sourced citations in ChatGPT Search: PromptWatch recorded an 86% decline (from about 3.83% to ~0.52%) after August 14, and Petra Labs observed roughly an 80% drop with other social-platform citations also down. OpenAI declined to explain the change; observers suggest causes including ChatGPT’s source‑selection behavior, Reddit moderation to curb spam and low‑quality AI content, shifts in Reddit–OpenAI licensing or negotiations, or commercial motives as OpenAI builds advertising and retailer integrations. A similar, disruptive collapse previously followed Google removing a search parameter used by scrapers. Marketers warn the volatility undermines AI/GEO visibility strategies and reinforces the value of owned, first‑party content and authentic community engagement over manipulative tactics.

• PromptWatch tracked Reddit’s share of ChatGPT citations falling from ~3.83% (mid‑July to early August) to ~0.52% after August 14 — an 86% drop.
• Petra Labs’ analysis observed roughly an 80% decline in Reddit citations on ChatGPT and decreases in citations from other social platforms.
• Gizmodo asked OpenAI about the citation drop; OpenAI did not provide an explanation.

Promptwatch CEO on Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)

Promptwatch founder and CEO Gijs de Groot discusses how search behavior is shifting from traditional engines like Google to AI-driven systems, and why brands must optimize across a broader information ecosystem—what he calls Generative Engine Optimization (GEO). Promptwatch, founded in March 2025, offers a platform that measures brand visibility in AI dialog systems, uses CDN log data and other signals to recommend technical and editorial optimizations, and has introduced a new solution called "Agentic AI Search Optimization" that can apply optimizations automatically. De Groot stresses the continuing importance of owned websites, high-quality content, and trusted sources while warning against mass low-quality AI content and an exclusive reliance on LLM-centered strategies.

• Promptwatch was founded in March 2025.
• Promptwatch offers a platform to optimize brand visibility in AI-driven dialog systems and to measure visibility in language-model answers.
• Promptwatch's entry packages start at €85 per month; the company also offers business licenses and enterprise solutions.