Introduction: Inside Canada’s Largest SEO Conference
In October, Toronto’s MaRS Discovery District hosted SEO IRL 2025, Canada’s largest search marketing conference. Across two focused days, leading voices such as Aleyda Solis, Kevin Indig, Marie Haynes, Ross Simmonds, and Manick Bhan explored the evolution of search in the age of artificial intelligence, large language models (LLMs), and topical authority.
As digital strategists at Flatdot Marketing, we attended to identify how these developments will reshape SEO in 2026 and beyond. What follows is an overview of the conference’s most important insights. This also covers what they mean for marketers aiming to future-proof their visibility across both Google Search and AI-powered discovery platforms.
1. AI-Driven SEO Workflows Move from Hype to Practice
Definition: AI-driven SEO refers to the integration of artificial intelligence in keyword research, content creation, and performance optimisation to scale insights and execution efficiently.
Speakers demonstrated that AI is no longer experimental, it has become the structural backbone of modern optimisation. Kevin Indig illustrated how automation can cluster keywords, model SERP intent, and generate data-rich briefs. Aleyda Solis highlighted how machine learning enables real-time competitor analysis and automated opportunity mapping.
Yet every expert agreed: AI should augment, not replace, human judgement. The most successful teams combine machine precision with editorial creativity, producing content that’s both data-driven and empathetic.
At Flatdot, we use AI tools to surface opportunities and streamline analysis, while strategy, storytelling, and brand voice remain firmly human. This hybrid workflow balances scalability with authenticity, the hallmark of effective SEO in 2025.
2. Topical Authority Is the New Link-Building
Definition: Topical authority measures how comprehensively a website covers a specific subject area, signalling expertise and trust to both users and algorithms.
Marie Haynes underscored a decisive shift: Google’s ranking systems increasingly reward semantic completeness and entity relationships rather than raw backlink counts. High-performing sites are structured as content clusters, pillar pages supported by interlinked subtopics that collectively demonstrate mastery.
Flatdot’s own analyses reflect this transition. We evaluate not only keyword coverage but depth, coherence, and interconnection. Instead of chasing volume, brands must now behave like publishers: building knowledge ecosystems that satisfy intent across an entire topic.
The strategic focus has evolved from link acquisition to trust construction. Authority is earned through completeness, clarity, and consistency.
3. Search Intent and LLMs Redefine Visibility
As LLM-based systems such as ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity influence how information is surfaced, visibility now depends on meaning matching, not simple keyword alignment.
Conference discussions around Google’s AI Overviews revealed that search engines increasingly interpret intent contextually. Instead of “ranking pages,” they’re assembling answers. This means websites must anticipate layered user motivations, transactional, informational, and investigative, within a single content journey.
At Flatdot, we design predictive SEO models that trace user intent progression. By structuring content for conversational queries and entity recognition, we optimise not just for current searches but for the next question a user is likely to ask.
In short, intent clarity equals discoverability in both Google’s AI systems and third-party LLM platforms.
4. Programmatic SEO: Personalisation at Scale
Programmatic SEO often conjures images of mass-produced pages, but the most insightful case studies at SEO IRL reframed it as a tool for precision personalisation.
By combining structured templates with dynamic data inputs, brands can serve thousands of pages tailored to niche intent (such as regional variations or product specifications) while maintaining editorial control.
However, speakers warned that unchecked automation risks duplication and quality dilution. Flatdot’s framework enforces editorial oversight at every stage: each template is reviewed for relevance, uniqueness, and tone before deployment.
5. Relationships and Community Still Matter
Despite the focus on AI and data, SEO IRL 2025 emphasised one enduring truth: this industry thrives on human connection.
Networking sessions revealed new collaborations between agencies, SaaS vendors, and educators. Many transformative insights came not from presentations but from practitioners comparing real-world experiments.
For Flatdot, this reinforced a strategic priority, to build alliances across the digital ecosystem. Innovation is a team effort, and the future of search will be shaped as much by shared learning as by technological progress.
Key Insights from SEO IRL 2025
- AI integration in SEO workflows has moved from concept to operational reality.
- Topical authority and EEAT (Experience, Expertise, Authority, Trust) now outweigh traditional backlink metrics.
- Search intent and LLM interpretation drive both organic and AI-generated visibility.
- Programmatic SEO enables targeted personalisation when executed responsibly.
- Relationships and community remain the backbone of sustainable growth.
Strategic Takeaways for Agencies and Brands
- Adopt AI Workflows Responsibly
Automate data gathering and analysis, but preserve human oversight for tone, accuracy, and ethics. - Build Topical Authority, Not Just Links
Develop subject depth through interlinked clusters and knowledge structures. - Optimise for Intent
Target layered search motivations, from discovery to conversion. - Scale with Precision
Use programmatic systems for relevance, not repetition. - Invest in Human Networks
Partner with innovators and educators; collaboration accelerates capability.
The Future Belongs to the Hybrid Thinker
SEO IRL 2025 demonstrated that the future of search will be defined by those who can integrate machine intelligence with human insight. Artificial intelligence may accelerate analysis, but storytelling, authenticity, and empathy continue to drive engagement.
At Flatdot Marketing, we’re applying these principles daily, building AI-assisted content ecosystems, refining topical authority strategies, and aligning every campaign with evolving user intent.
The message from Toronto was unmistakable: the winners in search will be those who think like humans and operate with the precision of machines. Mastering both is no longer optional, it’s the new foundation of competitive SEO.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the main SEO trends from SEO IRL 2025?
The dominant themes were AI-driven automation, topical authority frameworks, and intent-led optimisation, all converging to redefine how content earns visibility.
How can brands use AI responsibly in SEO?
AI should support, not replace, creative and strategic thinking. Use it for analysis, pattern detection, and scalability while maintaining human quality control.
Why is topical authority now essential?
Because Google and AI models evaluate subject mastery holistically. Consistent, semantically interlinked coverage signals credibility and improves ranking stability.
What does programmatic SEO actually achieve?
It enables large-scale, data-driven page creation for specific audience segments while retaining editorial consistency, effectively personalisation at scale.