04 · Topic ownership

How to Own a Topic in ChatGPT: Lessons from 50,000 Brands

Winning one prompt is not owning a topic. This keynote shows how a representative buyer-question set can reveal consistency, identify unsettled categories, and guide a defensible content priority.

Category leaders, brand teams, content executives, and market-intelligence teams30 to 45 minute keynoteEnglish or Spanish

Funded, not free. Semrush funds Fernando's research and stage time, so there is no fee to the event. Engagements are selected on audience fit rather than budget. Travel and logistics are discussed once an event is confirmed.

Business decisionDistinguish an isolated prompt win from topic-level visibility
Audience outcomeA repeatable five-prompt topic map
Research baseThe Semrush ChatGPT Topic Authority Study
AdaptationPrompt sets matched to the room's buyer journey
Outcomes

What changes after the session

01

Map one commercial topic across five buyer-question forms.

02

Apply the study's operational ownership threshold correctly.

03

Find an unsettled topic without assuming permanent ownership.

Take it back to work

A framework the room can use

Valuable for

Category leaders, brand teams, content executives, and market-intelligence teams.

Framework

Five-prompt topic map and ownership threshold.

Use this after the keynote to

build a representative buyer-question set, measure consistency, and choose an open topic to pursue.

The room leaves with

A repeatable way to distinguish an isolated prompt win from defensible topic-level visibility.

Inside the keynote

Three decisions, shown clearly

Authentic research material and representative samples show the visual and editorial standard. Final examples are verified and adapted before every event.

Representative sample
Stop tracking isolated prompts.Define, compare, alternatives, use case, and buy prompts reveal consistency across a commercial topic.Scope: Five-prompt method used in the Semrush ChatGPT Topic Authority Study.Boundary: A prompt set represents a topic; one isolated result does not.Read the source
Representative sample
Only 15.2% had a clear owner.The study classified 15.2% of categories as clear owners, 31.2% as emerging, and 53.7% as unsettled.Scope: ChatGPT Topic Authority Study · 2026 · more than 50,000 brands · 1,094 US categories · five prompts per category · January through June 2026Boundary: Owner is the study's operational definition, not permanent market ownership, and does not generalize beyond ChatGPT.Read the source
Representative sample
Measure a topic cluster repeatedly.Study-defined clear owners retained first place in 90.4% of month-over-month comparisons. Choose a representative topic cluster, apply the threshold, and track it over time.Scope: ChatGPT Topic Authority Study · 2026 · 1,094 US categories tracked monthly · January through June 2026 · clear-owner threshold: four of five prompts and a five-percentage-point leadBoundary: Observed month-over-month retention does not prove ownership caused retention and is not a guarantee of future stability.Read the source
Narrative

How the argument develops

  1. Replace one lucky prompt with a buyer-question cluster.
  2. Inspect category-level findings and the owner threshold.
  3. Choose a representative cluster and track it repeatedly.
Research foundation

ChatGPT Topic Authority Study

Scope: More than 50,000 brands across 1,094 US categories, using five prompts per category in ChatGPT from January through June 2026. Clear owners were assessed across month-over-month comparisons.

Evidence boundary: A clear owner appeared in at least four of five prompts and led the runner-up by at least five percentage points. The 90.4% retention finding is observed month-over-month stability. It does not prove ownership caused retention and is not a guarantee of future stability.

Source

Each quantitative claim is tied to this public source with its organization, study, date, market, time window, sample, and limit shown in HTML.

Read the primary source
Fit and non-fit

The right depth for the right room

Best fit

Senior brand, content, category, and intelligence teams choosing where to build consistent visibility.

Not designed for

Not rank tracking for isolated prompts and not a guarantee of lasting category leadership.

Delivery proof

Research built for a live room

Fernando Angulo presenting research to a seated conference audience
Fernando presenting research to a conference audience. Photo: Fernando Angulo archive. This image demonstrates delivery experience and does not claim to document this exact keynote.
Speaker

Fernando Angulo

I research how people, and increasingly AI systems, discover, evaluate, and choose brands, then turn that evidence into decisions marketing leaders can defend.

Senior Market Research Manager at Semrush, an Adobe company

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Organizer resources

No email is required. The PDF is approximately 2.5 MB and includes approved bios, keynote topics, audience fit, formats and languages, selected appearances, contact details, and press-photo access.

Download speaker kit (PDF, 2.5 MB)
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Organizer FAQ

Questions before you shortlist the talk

Does topic ownership mean a brand will stay visible?

No. Ownership is the study's operational label for a measured pattern during a defined period, not a permanent position or a guarantee.

How is the session adapted for an event?

The decision, examples, audience seniority, market context, and evidence boundaries are reviewed before delivery. The core research claims remain sourced.

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REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLE · THESISStop tracking isolated prompts.Define, compare, alternatives, use case, and buy prompts reveal consistency across a commercial topic.© Semrush · ChatGPT Topic Authority Study · 2026 · Market: US · Time window: January through June 2026 · Sample: five prompts per category
REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLE · EVIDENCEOnly 15.2% had a clear owner.The study classified 15.2% of categories as clear owners, 31.2% as emerging, and 53.7% as unsettled.© Semrush · ChatGPT Topic Authority Study · 2026 · Market: 1,094 US categories · Time window: January through June 2026 · Sample: more than 50,000 brands, five prompts per category
REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLE · DECISIONMeasure a topic cluster repeatedly.Study-defined clear owners retained first place in 90.4% of month-over-month comparisons. Choose a representative topic cluster, apply the threshold, and track it over time.© Semrush · ChatGPT Topic Authority Study · 2026 · Market: 1,094 US categories · Time window: January through June 2026 · Sample: monthly comparisons among study-defined clear owners