AI Crawlers
Last updated: March 2025
Definition
Bots that scrape web content to train or update AI models. GPTBot (OpenAI), ClaudeBot (Anthropic), Google-Extended, and others crawl your site looking for training data. You can block them via robots.txt, but blocking means AI systems won't learn about your brand. It's a trade-off between control and visibility.
Why It Matters
If you block AI crawlers, your content won't appear in AI training data or retrieval systems. If you allow them, your content helps train models that may cite you. Most businesses benefit from allowing crawlers because AI visibility is becoming a primary discovery channel.
How to Improve
- Audit your robots.txt for AI crawler directives. Know which bots you're blocking and which you're allowing.
- Allow crawlers for pages you want cited in AI responses. Block them for proprietary content you don't want scraped.
- Create an llms.txt file that gives AI crawlers a structured summary of your site and what it offers.
- Monitor your server logs for AI crawler activity. Understand how often they visit and which pages they prioritize.