SE Ranking’s New Study Shades Light On How AI Search Tools Deal With YMYL Queries

SE Ranking recently published a new study examining the way AI tools for search deal with YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) queries. 

This particular research compared ChatGPT, DeepSeek, and Google AI Overviews (AIOS) across 40 political, financial, legal, and health queries. SE Ranking had done a similar study in October – the only difference? While the October study solely focused on AIOs, this study examined several tools. 

So, here’s more information about this study – and what do the key findings from this study mean?

Key Findings From SE Ranking’s Latest Study On AI Search Tools:

Let’s check out the key findings from SE Ranking’s latest study on AI Search tools such as Google AI Overview,  DeepSeek, ChatGPT, and more:

1. Response Rate For YMYL Queries:

The study pointed out that Google typically generates AI Overviews for around 51% of queries – only a little more than 50% in October. Comparatively, DeepSeek’s response rate is 90% and ChatGPT has a robust 100% response rate for YMYL queries. 

Moreover, the selective approach of Google was obvious for most political topics, featuring AIOs for just a single query. 

2. Response Patterns:

Each platform shows unique patterns to generate responses for YMYL queries.

• Google offers the shortest replies spanning 190 words with minimum citations (around 7 sources). 
• ChatGPT offers replies of average length spanning 234 words with multiple sources (28 citations per response). 
• DeepSeek offers long answers spanning 391 words with several sources (28 citations per response).

In addition, the study also pointed out how Google AIOshaves the highest response percentage with unique links – a whopping 61.9% as compared to DeepSeek’s 32.5% and ChatGPT’s 40%

This indicates how Google makes diversity a priority over quantity. 

3. Opinions Vs. Facts:

With the help of subjectivity analysis, this study also measured how opinion-based versus factual each tool’s content appeared. 

• DeepSeek was the most subjective.
• ChatGPT turned out to be the most objective.
• Google AIOs placed second.  

Interestingly, these differences appeared to be more noticeable for political topics with DeepSeek scoring 0.497 and Google scoring 0.246 – so, while DeepSeek is more opinionated, Google AIOs are more factual. 

4. YMYL Category Strengths:

The study also pointed out the following major differences across different categories of Your Money or Your Life queries:

5. DeepSeek Restrictions:

The study highlighted DeepSeek’s refusal to answer queries about Chinese human rights, Tiananmen Square, banned Chinese websites, and Taiwan’s independence. 

It was obvious that DeepSeek’s replies are typically aligned with what the Chinese government thinks while addressing any related issues. 

What Does This Data Mean?

The most common thread here is how each tool protects users from any potentially harmful tips and tricks while trying to add value and be helpful. 

Google AIOs refuse to generate any content for nearly half of all tested queries, depending more on caution as compared to the risk of offering any wrong guidance. On the other hand, ChatGPT answers every query, often accompanied by succinct takeaways and strong disclaimers. 

DeepSeek stands at the extreme opposite – while at times, it can offer plenty of details, at other times, it opts for vague replies since the responses don’t align with any political persepctive. 

What brings the three tools together is striking the right balance between liability and information. Moreover, each model wants to be authoritative in different YMYL niches, while deciding to be safe or helpful.

Key Highlights For SEO:

From a content-SEO perspective, here are some major points to take into consideration:

Naturally, understanding the most notable differences between the three tools can help people improve their visibility. 

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