> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.surnex.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# AI keyword trends

> Search volume, velocity, and year-on-year growth for keywords in AI search.

**AI → AI Keyword Trends** reports how much a set of keywords is used in AI search, and whether that usage is growing.

## Running a lookup

Enter keywords in the textarea, **one per line**:

```
best seo tools
keyword research tool
rank tracker
```

Submit to get a row per keyword. Past lookups are kept so you can return to a set without re-running it.

## The table

| Column               | What it is                             |
| -------------------- | -------------------------------------- |
| **Keyword**          | The term                               |
| **AI Search Volume** | How much the term is used in AI search |
| **Velocity**         | How fast usage is changing             |
| **YoY Growth**       | Year-on-year change                    |

**Keyword** and **AI Search Volume** are sortable — click the header. Sorting by volume descending is usually the first thing to do.

## Reading it

**AI Search Volume** is a different quantity from the [search volume](/keywords/metrics#volume) on the Keywords pages. Traditional volume counts searches on a search engine; this counts usage in AI search. The two diverge, and the divergence is the finding: a term with modest traditional volume but high AI volume is one people increasingly ask an assistant rather than type into a search box.

**Velocity** and **YoY Growth** answer different questions. YoY compares to the same point last year and captures the established trend. Velocity captures current momentum. A term with flat YoY growth but high velocity is accelerating now — the case worth acting on early, because it won't show up in annual figures for months.

The reverse also matters: strong YoY growth with low velocity is a term that grew and has plateaued. Real, but no longer an opportunity.

## What to do with it

**Compare phrasings.** AI queries are conversational — people ask "what's the best rank tracker for agencies" rather than searching "rank tracker". Run both phrasings and see which carries the AI volume.

**Find terms early.** High velocity on low volume is the cheapest moment to build content for a term. By the time YoY growth confirms it, the competition has arrived.

**Sanity-check traditional research.** A keyword with strong traditional volume and negligible AI volume isn't declining — it just isn't being asked conversationally. Both can be true, and content for each looks different.

## Empty result

**No AI trend data found for these keywords.** Common on brand terms, very niche phrases, or short head terms that aren't asked as questions. Try longer, more conversational phrasings.

## Related

* [Explore trends](/trends/explore) — traditional search interest over time, for comparison
* [Keyword metrics](/keywords/metrics) — volume, difficulty, and intent for conventional search
* [AI search overview](/ai/overview) — how the AI section fits together