The AEO platform market moved fast in the first half of 2026. Profound crossed a $1 billion valuation. Sitecore acquired Scrunch for a reported $225 million. A category that barely existed two years ago now has enterprise M&A activity and a clear set of established players.
AEO platforms comparison: the tools most teams are evaluating
Profound
Profound is the enterprise standard. It monitors brand visibility across 9+ AI engines, includes content optimization workflows (called Agents), and raised $155 million at a $1 billion valuation in early 2026. It is a full-stack platform: monitoring, content recommendations, and automated workflows — not just a tracker.
The tradeoff is cost and complexity. Profound is priced for enterprise budgets with a meaningful learning curve.
Otterly
Otterly starts at around $29 per month — the most accessible entry point in the market. It covers major AI platforms, tracks citation share over time, and flags content opportunities. It is a monitoring and recommendations tool — see our AEO tracking guide for how to set up a reporting cadence, not a full-stack platform. Consensus best monitoring-only option for non-enterprise buyers.
Scrunch (now Sitecore)
Scrunch was acquired by Sitecore in June 2026 for a reported $225 million. Its key differentiator is the Agent Experience Platform (AXP) — a structured layer of your website specifically optimized for AI crawlers. Rather than just tracking citations, it helps build a parallel presence that AI systems reliably read. Post-acquisition, roadmap clarity for standalone buyers is still pending.
Peec AI
Peec AI is enterprise-focused and strongest for head-to-head competitor tracking across AI platforms.
How to choose by stage
- SMB or first AEO program: Start with Otterly. $29/month lets you establish a baseline with minimal risk.
- Mid-market team: Otterly for monitoring, or Scrunch if you want the AXP layer for a more structured AI-readable presence.
- Enterprise with a dedicated AEO program: Profound is the standard — the data depth and workflow layer justify the cost.
- Teams already inside Sitecore: Wait for clarity on the Scrunch integration roadmap.
What the Sitecore/Scrunch deal signals
A $225 million acquisition by a major enterprise CMS player signals that AEO tooling is moving into mainstream marketing technology stacks. Expect major martech platforms — HubSpot, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Adobe — to either build or acquire AEO capabilities over the next 18 months. A standalone AEO tool that ends up inside a platform you already use is a different value proposition than it is today.
Key takeaways
- Profound: enterprise-standard, full-stack (monitoring + content + workflow), $1B valuation, 9+ AI engines.
- Otterly: best entry point at $29/month, monitoring and recommendations only, ideal for agencies and SMBs.
- Scrunch: differentiated by AXP layer, acquired by Sitecore for ~$225M in June 2026.
- Peec AI: enterprise-focused, strongest for competitor tracking.
- Choose by stage: SMB → Otterly, mid-market → Otterly or Scrunch, enterprise → Profound or Peec.
- The Sitecore/Scrunch deal signals AEO is entering mainstream martech within 18 months.