Searchable buys Meridian in seven-figure deal to widen US footprint
What's the deal? Searchable, an AI visibility platform, has acquired New York-based startup Meridian in a seven-figure deal. Meridian's customers — including APLDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, MedClineDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and VKTRYDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → — will migrate to Searchable's platform, and its product will be folded into Searchable.
Why now? Searchable only launched in late 2025 and is moving fast to build a US presence. It opened a Salt Lake City office in August, hired two employees from Scrunch AI, and now adds Meridian's US customer base and a New York foothold.
What's the endgame? Both firms work in answer engine optimization (AEO), an emerging category that helps brands track and improve how AI search tools represent and recommend them. Searchable works with more than 1,000 brands and monitors mentions, citations, and comparisons across 10 AI engines, drawing on a dataset of more than one billion AI citations and 400 million brand mentions.
Searchable raised $14 million in seed funding led by Headline in May 2026 at an $85 million valuation. It operates from London and New York.
What they're saying: "American brands are some of the furthest ahead in the AI visibility race," said Chris Donnelly, co-founder and chief executive officer of Searchable. "Meridian brings us a strong base of businesses that want to push their AEO strategy even further."
Meridian co-founder and chief executive officer Alex Dees said Searchable's "team and product will be vital in continuing to lead that mission for Meridian's customers." Meridian publicly launched in October 2025.
The signal: As buyers increasingly turn to AI chatbots to find products, tracking brand visibility inside those tools is becoming its own market — projected to reach $10.7 billion by 2031. Early consolidation, with a months-old startup already buying rivals and poaching talent, shows how quickly the category is taking shape.
Read more: citybiz.co
Image credit: Fraser Mummery
