Source Attribution
Source attribution is how an AI engine credits the sources behind its answer, the named links, footnotes or "sources" panel that tell the user where a claim came from. It's the mechanism that turns invisible model knowledge into a visible citation you can actually earn and benefit from.
Why it matters to a founder: attribution is the difference between a model knowing about you and the user seeing your name. When an engine attributes a point to your site, you get brand exposure, implied credibility, and sometimes a click, all at the moment a buyer is deciding. Attribution behaviour varies by engine: Perplexity attributes heavily, ChatGPT depends on mode and whether it browsed, and Google's AI Overviews link a small set. You improve your odds of being attributed by being the clearest, most authoritative, most quotable source on a topic, and by making facts easy to lift via structured content. Watch how each engine attributes your category and shape your content to be the source it reaches for.