Perplexity's Citation Algorithm: What Actually Gets You Cited Perplexity is the second most popular AI search engine in the US. Millions of people ask it questions every day. And when Perplexity answers, it cites sources. Your brand either gets that citation or it doesn't. The difference isn't luck. Most brands still treat AI visibility like SEO: write good content, optimize keywords, hope for the best. This approach fails in AI citation because Perplexity's algorithm doesn't rank pages. It retrieves and synthesizes them. The goal isn't to rank first. The goal is to be considered authoritative enough to cite. Perplexity uses a multi-layer evaluation system that starts with domain authority but doesn't stop there. It looks at topical relevance, content freshness, and whether your page actually answers the specific query being asked. A competitor's homepage might rank higher in Google but appear worthless to Perplexity for a niche question. Authority matters first.…