AI Field Notes – Issue No. 3

The Collapse of Search Has Quietly Begun

April 5th, 2025

What We’re Seeing

A CNBC report this week made it plain: Google could end up like Kodak if it doesn’t adapt.

“Google is in the first inning of potentially being disrupted. We’ve seen this story before. It’s called Eastman Kodak.”
— Brent Thill, Jefferies

This isn’t just analyst noise.

We’re watching the early-stage collapse of search as a primary channel for discovery and customer acquisition.

The fundamentals are shifting:

• User behavior is leaving Google
• AI is handling queries directly
• Traffic and intent are leaking out of the ecosystem
  

This feels a lot like 2007. Mobile changed everything—and most agencies didn’t adjust until it was too late.

Why It Matters

If you’re in marketing or reliant on search-based traffic for leads, this changes your operating model.

• CACs will spike as competition consolidates
• Attribution will get murkier
• “Organic search” will become an empty metric
• Brands that rely on rankings will become invisible
• Entire funnels will collapse without warning

We’re not talking about a 10-year disruption cycle. This is an 18-month window to pivot—or perish.

What We’re Doing

At Commexis, we’re making AI the foundation, not an add-on.

1. Standing up our AI Lab

A sandbox for testing and documenting AI-powered marketing systems.

We’re starting with:

• Databricks for data infrastructure
• ChatGPT + SparkToro for audience intel
• Experiments with AI agents targeting specific funnel gaps

2. Building Virtual Employees

We’re productizing how we deploy AI inside client orgs.

The offer:

• Build your AI marketing team
• Pilot with us or run it yourself
• Standardized onboarding, delivery, and results

3. Attacking Search Head-On

We’re redirecting effort away from SEO/SEM and toward LLM-native distribution:

• Embedding chat + agent experiences on-site
• Content engineered for AI discovery, not rankings
• Direct-to-intelligence customer acquisition paths

What You Should Be Asking

If you believe search is in decline, what are you doing about it?

• What percent of your leads come from Google?
• What’s your CAC trend over the past 12 months?
• Are you testing AI as a front-end for customer discovery?
• Can you articulate what replaces search for your industry?

If not—now is the time to build.

Bottom Line

Search isn’t dying. It’s being rerouted. Google isn’t going away. But its monopoly on intent is. And if your growth depends on them, so might you.

One Quote To Remember 

“AI is not the tool. It’s the terrain. And most agencies are still bringing roadmaps to a jungle.”

The Kodak moment isn’t coming. It’s here.

Now’s the time to make your move.

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