Organizations succeed by executing a strategy quickly rather than creating fixed “campaigns” or endlessly discussing and attempting for perfection.
I’ve called this strategy Real-Time Marketing and PR. Newsjacking, a concept I pioneered, is one aspect of implementing it.
Real-time content creation has always been an effective way of communicating online. But now, in the age of AI-powered search, it has become even more important.
When I first wrote about real-time marketing and PR, the tension was between speed and bureaucracy. Many companies wanted to deliberate, polish, and refine their messaging until it was “just right.”
By the time their campaigns were ready, though, the world had already moved on, while those who acted immediately often captured the spotlight.
That dynamic hasn’t changed.
What has changed is the way people discover information.
Today, millions of people rely on AI when they have a question, and these tools are rewriting the rules of discovery. Most of the large language models developed by Google, OpenAI, and Meta were trained on information that is already months or years old. The models do not know what happened last month or even last year.
Some AI tools like Perplexity and Google AI search now have hybrid models, where some answers come from the LLMs and their learning from older content, while queries about recent events rely on appropriate websites for answers.
This creates an opportunity for communicators.
If you can publish content in the first hours after a story breaks, you have a chance to become the authority that both people and AI tools surface as the most credible and useful resource.
This is the new real-time window.
It isn’t just about being the first to post something clever on Twitter or LinkedIn, or the first to pitch a journalist with commentary. Those actions still matter, but now there is another layer.
AI systems are constantly searching for the freshest, most authoritative content they can find.
If you’re there early with clarity, insight, and credibility, you don’t just influence the media narrative. You become the “answer” that AI delivers to the curious public.
The heart of real-time PR is still speed. To succeed, organizations need to be able to respond in minutes, not days. That requires more than technology; it requires mindset.
Smart communicators constantly monitor the world around them and keep an eye on regulatory shifts, news stories, and cultural moments. And they’re ready to move when the moment is right.
Communicators need leaders who are willing to empower teams to publish without getting lost in endless layers of approval. That way, when the moment arrives, you can move immediately.
Newsjacking—the art of injecting your perspective into a breaking story—has always been powerful, but in this AI-driven era it takes on even greater importance.
When you frame your commentary in a blog post or web page in a way that mirrors how people naturally ask questions, you increase your chance of being quoted not only by journalists but also being found by AI search.
Instead of producing content with stiff corporate headlines, write in plain language that answers the questions people are asking right now: what does this development mean, why should I care, and how does it affect me?
A press release can be a good way to get this information into the marketplace of ideas.
Better yet, a issue a press release and create a blog post or web page simultaneously.
Include clear signals of freshness such as “as of September 17, 2025” so that algorithms recognize your perspective as current. And don’t limit yourself to traditional formats. A quick LinkedIn post, a short video clip, or even a thoughtful comment in a live social thread can become content that gets indexed and amplified.
The best part of acting quickly is that you set the tone for how others interpret an event. When you publish first, you’re not simply joining a conversation. You’re shaping it.
In a world where attention is scarce, real-time PR gives you a way to cut through the noise. Journalists are drowning in irrelevant pitches. Consumers are bombarded with marketing messages they don’t care about.
AI search engines are now deciding which information people see first. The companies and individuals who understand this shift and act on it will stand apart.
The organizations that monitor continually, act decisively, and publish quickly will become the ones people turn to for clarity. And because AI tools increasingly mediate how people experience the world, those same organizations will also become the voices that artificial intelligence amplifies.
Like the dawn of Twitter and when the Google search engine went real-time nearly two decades ago, this is another moment to embrace speed.
Not to chase every headline, but to be prepared so that when the right story breaks, you are ready.
You don’t need to be perfect—you need to be present.
Because in the age of AI search, if you’re not fast, you’re invisible.
The summit is organizer for public relations and marketing professionals at the corporate and agency level: "Your 2026 PR Playbook Starts Here – Plan Boldly, Lead Strategically!"