AI agents can now read your website the way a customer would
New AI agents don't need special code to understand a business's site, so clear, current basics like hours, services and prices matter more than ever.
What happened
MIT Technology Review reports that the long-promised era of AI agents has arrived. An AI agent is software that can take steps on its own, like searching, comparing and booking, instead of just answering a question. The outlet says tools such as Meta's Muse and OpenAI's Dots are logging record downloads and are being given access to people's bank accounts and email inboxes.
The story looks back to 2001, when web inventor Tim Berners-Lee imagined agents booking something like a physical therapy appointment for a family member. That vision needed website owners to add special labels, called tags, so software could tell a street address from a list of services. The idea never really caught on, and Eni Mustafaraj, an associate professor of computer science at Wellesley College, says, "It's a lot of labor."
What changed is the technology behind today's chatbots, known as large language models. According to MIT Technology Review, agents built on them don't need tags to work out which text on a clinic's site is the address and which part lists its services. Some can even read screenshots and click links and drop-down menus.
Why it matters
More and more, the first visitor to your website may not be a person. Someone might ask an agent to find a nearby place that's open Saturday, and the agent reads the sites for them.
MIT Technology Review also notes that companies from Etsy to Expedia have partnered with major AI firms to build tools that let agents work directly with their services. The outlet adds that it's still hard to tell exactly what shape the agentic web will take.
So the safest move is the cheap one. Your website is still your front door, and now software may walk through it too. It's reasonable to guess that matching details across your site and your other listings can only help, whether a person or an agent is reading them.
What it means for your business
- Clinics and dental offices: Put your address, services, accepted insurance and appointment options in plain text on the page, not only inside a PDF or an image.
- Restaurants: Keep hours, menu, prices and reservation details in readable text, and update them when holiday hours or specials change.
- Trades and local retail: List the areas you serve, what you do, and starting prices or typical ranges. Clear details make you easier to compare and book.
- Law firms: Describe your practice areas, locations and how to start a consultation in simple sentences a stranger could follow.
One thing to try this week
Copy the text of your homepage and services page into a free chatbot. Ask: "What are this business's address, hours, services and prices, and how do I book?"
If the answer is wrong, vague or missing something, fix that spot on your site first. Then check that the same details match on your other listings, such as your Google profile and social pages.