Adobe said on Wednesday that it has agreed to acquire search engine optimization companySemrushfor about $1.9 billion in cash, as the Photoshop maker seeks to augment its suite of marketing offerings.
In a statement, Adobesaidit would offer $12 per share for Semrush, almost double the latter’s closing price of $6.89 on Tuesday, before news of the deal. Semrush had a market capitalization of about $1 billion as of Tuesday’s close.
Indeed, as of October, traffic to retail websites from generative AI chatbots increased 1,200% compared to a year earlier, per Adobe Analyticsdata.
Semrush has been investing in what it calls “generative engine optimization,” and recently launched a tool for tracking and improving website performance using both traditional SEO techniques and optimization for AI engines, like ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, Grok, and Perplexity.
“Brand visibility is being reshaped by generative AI, and brands that don’t embrace this new opportunity risk losing relevance and revenue,” said Anil Chakravarthy, president of Adobe’s Digital Experience Business. “With Semrush, we’re unlocking GEO for marketers as a new growth channel alongside their SEO, driving more visibility, customer engagement and conversions across the ecosystem.”
Source: Techcrunch
