Startup helps firms navigate the shift from Google to AI search

This article is a part of Startup Spotlight, a series that features young, up-and-coming startups.

Image credit: Canlah AI

Growing up in his mother’s office in Singapore, Haoyang Pang learned to build solutions for business challenges early on. He noticed that the core struggle for any venture is getting customers to show up and pay.

To address how modern buyers ask AI instead of Google for recommendations, he built Canlah AI.

😟 Problem

In a March 2026 G2 survey, 51% of B2B software buyers said they started research with an AI chatbot over Google. Additionally, 69% chose a different vendor than planned based on AI recommendations. However, a strong traditional search ranking does not guarantee a mention in generative AI answers.

💡 Solution

Canlah AI functions as an AI marketing team to improve generative engine optimization for brands. Its products include:

• Canlah GEO: A Chrome extension monitoring AI answers to buyer questions while tracking cited websites.
• DeepAudit: An analysis tool comparing the business against three rivals across 180 AI answers.
• Canlah All-Stars: Six AI agents executing market research, strategy, website fixes, and content creation.

Image credit: Canlah AI

📊 Market size

The company estimates a US$111 million annual opportunity across managed teams, self-serve accounts, and data subscriptions by 2033.

AI platforms now drive approximately 770 million web visits a month, while generative search traffic increased by 117% over the last year.

🤝 Team

• Haoyang (Phil) Pang. Founder and CEO. He holds a computer science degree from NTU and previously worked as a strategist at Apple’s advertising agency. He also conducted AI-agent research at Stanford.

🚀 Traction

• Generated S$450,000 (US$353,000) in billed revenue and pipeline as of September 2026.
• Secured 14 client brands across four markets, including a global AI cloud provider and a tech platform.
• Published 115 open AI agent skills with over 78,800 downloads on ClawHub.
• Selected as an OpenAI Select Partner in September 2026.

🏆 Competition

Competitors include AI-visibility software like Profound and newer generative search agencies like Synscribe. Canlah AI differentiates itself by delivering finished marketing work rather than just analytics dashboards, as well as monthly re-tests against a starting baseline to track exact AI mentions.

💰 Financials

🚩 Risks