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Waseit
Waseit Study · 2026-09

US businesses in AI answers

When a customer asks an AI assistant who the best local business is for a job, the assistant answers with names. We asked the questions real buyers ask - the same ones our audits use - to ChatGPT and Gemini, across 18 trades and 13 US cities. Here is who they named.

872

AI answers analyzed

90%

of answers name specific businesses

5.2

businesses cited per answer on average

3%

overlap between assistants

Rankings · 72 answers

What the AIs answer in New York

The businesses cited most, trade by trade. The both AIs badge marks the names both assistants agree on.

accountant

  1. 1
    PwCboth AIs
    3×
  2. 2
    Deloitteboth AIs
    2×
  3. 3
    KPMGboth AIs
    2×

attorney

  1. 1
    Avvoplatform
    1× · ChatGPT
  2. 2
    Martindale-Hubbellplatform
    1× · ChatGPT
  3. 3
    FindLawplatform
    1× · ChatGPT

auto repair shop

  1. 1
    Gotham Auto Works
    1× · ChatGPT
  2. 2
    Muffler Man
    1× · ChatGPT
  3. 3
    B & R Auto Service
    1× · ChatGPT

bakery

  1. 1
    Levain Bakeryboth AIs
    3×
  2. 2
    Magnolia Bakeryboth AIs
    2×
  3. 3
    Dominique Ansel Bakery
    2× · ChatGPT

dentist

  1. 1
    Dr. Michael Apa
    1× · ChatGPT
  2. 2
    Dr. Steven Gold
    1× · ChatGPT
  3. 3
    Dr. Rebecca L. Wexler
    1× · ChatGPT

driving school

  1. 1
    Driving Lessons NYC
    2× · ChatGPT
  2. 2
    A1 Driving School
    2× · ChatGPT
  3. 3
    Brooklyn Driving School
    1× · ChatGPT

electrician

  1. 1
    NYC Electrician
    1× · ChatGPT
  2. 2
    B. H. Electrical Services
    1× · ChatGPT
  3. 3
    Sullivan Electric
    1× · ChatGPT

hair salon

  1. 1
    Butterfly Studio Salon
    2× · ChatGPT
  2. 2
    Fox & Jane Salon
    2× · ChatGPT
  3. 3
    Spoke & Weal
    2× · ChatGPT

hotel

  1. 1
    The Peninsula New Yorkboth AIs
    3×
  2. 2
    The St. Regis New Yorkboth AIs
    2×
  3. 3
    The Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotelboth AIs
    2×

hvac contractor

  1. 1
    Cool Power
    1× · ChatGPT
  2. 2
    Comfort Solutions
    1× · ChatGPT
  3. 3
    Air Conditioning Experts
    1× · ChatGPT

insurance broker

  1. 1
    Aonboth AIs
    4×
  2. 2
    HUB Internationalboth AIs
    4×
  3. 3
    NFPboth AIs
    2×

locksmith

  1. 1
    Broadway Locksmith
    2× · Gemini
  2. 2
    New York Locksmith
    1× · ChatGPT
  3. 3
    Pop-A-Lock
    1× · ChatGPT

marketing agency

  1. 1
    Droga5both AIs
    4×
  2. 2
    Wieden+Kennedyboth AIs
    3×
  3. 3
    Ogilvyboth AIs
    3×

plumber

  1. 1
    Citywide Plumbing
    2× · ChatGPT
  2. 2
    Roto-Rooter Plumbing & Water Cleanup
    1× · ChatGPT
  3. 3
    Benjamin Franklin Plumbing
    1× · ChatGPT

real estate agent

  1. 1
    Compassboth AIs
    2×
  2. 2
    Brown Harris Stevensboth AIs
    2×
  3. 3
    The Eklund-Gomes Team
    2× · Gemini

restaurant

  1. 1
    Le Bernardinboth AIs
    4×
  2. 2
    Joe’s Pizzaboth AIs
    3×
  3. 3
    Katz’s Delicatessenboth AIs
    3×

staffing agency

  1. 1
    Robert Halfboth AIs
    3×
  2. 2
    Beacon Hill Staffing Groupboth AIs
    2×
  3. 3
    The Execu|Search Groupboth AIs
    2×

wedding photographer

  1. 1
    Jose Villaboth AIs
    3×
  2. 2
    Jasmine Star
    2× · ChatGPT
  3. 3
    Annie Leibovitz
    2× · ChatGPT

The 12 other cities

Los Angeles · Chicago · Houston · Phoenix · Philadelphia · San Diego · Dallas · Austin · Denver · Seattle · Miami · Atlanta

Unlock the rankings for the 12 other cities

Los AngelesChicagoHoustonPhoenixPhiladelphiaSan DiegoDallasAustinDenverSeattleMiamiAtlanta

Trade by trade, with the businesses each assistant recommends. Free, in exchange for your email.

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Chains & platforms

The names that come up in several cities

Cited in at least 3 of the 13 cities studied.

01Robert Half

cited 37× · 13/13 cities

02Aerotek

cited 27× · 13/13 cities

03Insight Global

cited 26× · 12/13 cities

04Kforce

cited 25× · 12/13 cities

05Randstad USA

cited 22× · 12/13 cities

06HUB International

cited 17× · 10/13 cities

07TEKsystems

cited 15× · 10/13 cities

08Roto-Rooter Plumbing & Water Cleanup

cited 12× · 10/13 cities

09RSM US LLP

cited 16× · 9/13 cities

10Lucas Group

cited 14× · 9/13 cities

11OfficeTeam

cited 12× · 9/13 cities

12Brown & Brown Insurance

cited 12× · 8/13 cities

Browse the data by city and trade: who the assistants recommend, city by city

Method

Methodology and limits

Data collected on 2026-09-13. For each of the 18 trades and each of the 13 cities, we asked 2 buying-intent questions to ChatGPT and Gemini - the same questions our AI visibility audits use. All 218 trade-city cells were answered by every engine listed. This pass records the businesses named, not the sources the assistants consulted, so this study makes no claim about sources. Business names are extracted by the same parser as our product, tuned for precision over recall - the figures slightly undercount citations rather than inflate them, and phrases that are not businesses are left out of the lists shown.

Limits: AI answers vary from one session to the next - these rankings are a snapshot, not a permanent truth, and nobody can guarantee a place in them. A business absent from these rankings is not “bad” - it was simply not named in these answers.

And your business - do the AIs recommend it?

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