I have been asking myself the same question for the last few months, especially after seeing so much discussion around AI SEO. So instead of following the hype, I started checking it practically while auditing websites.
Over time, I reviewed more than 90 websites in the UAE across industries like healthcare, real estate, legal services, ecommerce, education, home services, and B2B businesses. One thing I started paying close attention to was whether websites appearing inside ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and Google AI Overviews had implemented llms.txt.
To be honest, what I found was very different from what many people are claiming online.
A large number of websites already getting visibility in AI generated answers had no llms.txt file at all. Some of them had strong brand presence, some were local UAE businesses, and some were not even technically perfect websites. Yet AI systems were still mentioning them.
That made me stop and ask a bigger question.
If llms.txt is really the reason websites appear in AI systems, why are so many websites showing up without it?
So I went deeper.
I checked websites that had implemented llms.txt recently, especially those who were expecting fast improvements in AI visibility. In most cases, I did not notice any clear pattern showing that the file alone made a difference. A few business owners expected their website to suddenly start appearing inside AI answers after implementation, but that simply did not happen.
What I actually noticed was something much more human and much less technical.
The websites that appeared more consistently inside AI generated responses usually had content that felt real.
Their pages answered actual customer questions.
Their blogs covered topics in depth instead of staying surface level.
Their service pages explained things clearly.
Many had strong reviews, brand mentions, citations, and clear expertise in one niche.
Some even had imperfections in SEO, but their content was genuinely useful.
This is where I think many businesses misunderstand AI visibility.
Right now, AI systems seem to care more about confidence and trust in information rather than technical tricks. If your website gives clear answers, demonstrates expertise, and consistently talks about your niche in a meaningful way, there is a higher chance AI systems may reference your content.
That does not mean llms.txt has no role.
Personally, I think it may become more important later. We are still in the early stages of AI crawling and agent behaviour. Similar to how structured data became more useful over time, llms.txt could eventually become a signal that helps AI understand content priorities or preferred information sources.
That is why I still recommend adding it. It is simple to implement, future focused, and there is very little downside.
But if I am speaking honestly from what I have seen after auditing websites in the UAE, I would never tell a client that llms.txt is the reason they will start appearing in ChatGPT or AI agents.
If the website has weak content, generic AI written blogs, no depth, poor authority, or unclear messaging, one file is not going to fix that.
The businesses I have seen getting better AI visibility are usually the ones putting real effort into content quality, building authority in one area, answering customer concerns properly, and creating information that people actually find helpful.
For now, I see llms.txt as preparation for the future, not the magic key to AI visibility.