AI search for VC portfolios
Platform leads, partners and portfolio operations teams are asked how their companies show up when buyers ask AI for software recommendations. We baseline the whole portfolio, prioritise the companies where it matters most, and report in a form a partnership can use.
How software buyers shortlist now
AI search for VC portfolios means measuring how ChatGPT, Copilot, Claude, Gemini and Google AI Overviews describe and recommend each portfolio company, then prioritising and fixing the gaps by stage. It gives a fund a portfolio-wide baseline, targeted deployment where category authority matters most, and reporting partners and LPs can read.
When a buyer asks an AI tool to recommend software in a portfolio company's category, the answer names a few vendors and leaves the rest out. A strong product that is missing from that answer can lose deals it never knew it was in.
That makes AI visibility a portfolio-level question. Companies approaching a Series A or B raise face the most pressure, because category authority in AI engines shapes the narrative investors and customers both see. We map the prompts each company's buyers use and track them from day one.
Examples of the prompts we track for portfolio companies
Why portfolios are different
A seed company needs a different programme from one approaching Series B. We prioritise deployment by stage and by where category authority will move the narrative most.
Cross-portfolio benchmarking shows which companies are at risk and which have breakout potential, so platform teams can spend time where it pays back.
Clean, board-ready reporting on citation share, organic growth metrics and influenced pipeline, in a form that supports an LP update as well as a board meeting.
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We baseline AI visibility across your entire portfolio, identifying which companies are at risk and which have breakout potential.
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We focus first on companies approaching Series A or B, where category authority in AI engines has the greatest impact on narrative and valuation.
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Portfolio companies get full tracking, prompt mapping and pipeline attribution set up from day one, with no black box and no waiting for a quarterly report.
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Board-ready reporting on citation share, organic growth metrics and influenced pipeline, with cross-portfolio benchmarking layered on top.
Case study, FirstMotion's own AI search proof
The problem. A GEO agency that cannot show its own AI search results is hard to trust, so we ran our own playbook on ourselves and published the evidence.
What we did. We mapped a narrow, high-intent prompt set, tracked it daily by engine, diagnosed what was driving citations and closed the gaps in entity signals, content and third-party footprint.
The outcome. ChatGPT names FirstMotion as the top answer in 3 of 3 separate threads and ranks it ahead of seven other named London agencies when asked for a shortlist.
Read the full case studyMeasurement source: ChatGPT threads screenshotted and published on the case study.
Profiles, ratings and category pages.
"Best of" and "alternatives" articles.
Trade press, analyst notes and roundups.
Reddit and other forum threads.
Product, pricing, integration and comparison pages.
In depth
The same measurement works before you invest. Checking how AI describes a target, which sources it cites and whether AI-referred pipeline is offsetting any decline in organic traffic gives a fast read on a company's real market position. We set out the method in our guide to AI search readiness in VC due diligence.
For portfolio pricing, including how it flexes across a larger portfolio, see our pricing for VCs and investors.
One question: when a buyer asks AI in this category, is the portfolio company named? If not, who is? It is the simplest diligence question a platform team can put to every company.
It is a leading indicator, because share of answer moves before revenue does and gives an early read on category position. A baseline across a portfolio is quick and inexpensive with tools such as Peec or Profound. And in our view citation authority takes 18 to 24 months to build, so early movers compound while laggards pay to catch up.
Most GEO experiments will not move the needle, and that is normal. We budget for a high failure rate, run many small, cheap bets and only take shots with asymmetric upside, because a single cited comparison page or earned placement can own a whole prompt cluster.
We instrument everything, so even a loss teaches you which source an engine trusts. You cannot predict the roll, but you can understand the range of outcomes and position for them.
Each portfolio company starts with the same standalone strategy phase we run for any client, from £5,995 (+VAT), scoped to that company. From there, an optional retainer runs from £3,500 (+VAT) a month per company, with cross-portfolio benchmarking and board-ready reporting layered on top.
Both. Some VCs bring us in company by company as they identify priority investments. Others run a portfolio-wide baseline first, then prioritise deployment based on what it finds.
Yes. Portfolio-wide programmes are scoped and priced around your priorities. More companies engaged, or a longer commitment, typically improves the per-company rate. Talk to us for a portfolio-specific quote.
Usually the ones approaching a Series A or B raise, where category authority in AI engines has the greatest effect on narrative, and any where a baseline shows a competitor dominating the answers.
Yes. We check how AI describes the target, which sources it cites and whether AI-referred pipeline is offsetting any decline in organic traffic. The method is set out in our due diligence guide.
In our experience, early citation gains often appear within 8 to 12 weeks of the strategy phase finishing, and share of voice tends to compound over three to six months. Timelines vary by company, category and competition, and we do not guarantee specific results.
When a buyer asks AI in this category, is the company named? If not, who is? It takes minutes to test, and it tells you quickly whether a company is part of the consideration set or invisible.
Early citation gains can appear within 8 to 12 weeks of a strategy phase finishing, but in our view full citation authority takes 18 to 24 months to build. That gap is why early movers compound and laggards pay to catch up.
Start with a free 20-minute call. We will talk through your portfolio and tell you honestly whether we can help.