Name.com has published a survey on how artificial intelligence is reshaping web discovery and domain name strategy. The findings are based on responses from 1,120 decision-makers in the UK and the US.
The report points to a shift in how users find websites, with AI tools increasingly serving as a starting point instead of traditional search engines. Among UK respondents, 65% said they trusted AI-recommended sites more than websites surfaced through conventional search.
That shift is also changing how brands establish credibility online. The survey found that 62% of UK respondents verify a brand by going directly to its main website, suggesting that owned web addresses still play a central role even as AI systems mediate discovery.
The findings suggest domain names are taking on greater importance as digital identity markers. Across the full respondent group, 77% said they expected strong domain names to rise in value as AI changes how products are built and found online.
Name.com's data also showed a growing focus on domain strategy among founders, marketers, and entrepreneurs. In the UK sample, 62% said they had made domain-related decisions in the past year because of AI, while 63% said they had registered keyword-rich domains over the same period.
Those responses suggest businesses are adapting their online branding for AI-generated answers and recommendations. Across the broader survey, 40% of respondents said they expected keyword-rich domains to perform best in AI-generated results, while 19% said descriptive, industry-specific top-level domains would outperform more established extensions.
Trust concerns
The report also identified tension between growing reliance on AI and concern about its reliability. While 65% said they trusted AI-recommended sites, 30% cited misinformation and fake sites as a leading concern.
That leaves domain names positioned as a trust signal at a time when content is becoming easier to generate and distribute. The study argues that as software and website creation become faster and cheaper, users may place more value on recognisable digital identities than on the underlying code.
Name.com linked that argument to changes in registration activity on its platform. It said .dev registrations rose eightfold in 2025, while .app, .codes, and .software also recorded growth.
Those gains reflect demand for web addresses that indicate a project's purpose or technical focus. That fits the survey's broader view that domain names are no longer just access points for websites, but assets used to signal identity and legitimacy.
Research for the report included survey work and one-to-one interviews conducted with a third-party research firm. Respondents actively managed domains, websites, or digital products, and the interview programme included 12 figures from AI, domain, and internet culture fields.
For businesses trying to navigate AI-led discovery, the findings suggest visibility is becoming tied to both machine-readability and user trust. Companies may need to think not only about how AI tools cite or recommend them, but also about whether users can quickly verify a site once they arrive.
Sammy Ahmed, VP and General Manager, Name.com, said domain choices are becoming more important as barriers to creating online products fall. "As development becomes more accessible, a new wave of founders and builders are launching products and choosing domain extensions that reflect their purpose," Ahmed said. "In a world where anyone can publish instantly, domain names are becoming critical signals of trust and identity."
The report places those trends within what it calls the Agentic Web, a model in which AI agents and generative interfaces increasingly shape navigation and information discovery. In that environment, businesses may have less control over how people first encounter them and a greater need for consistent identifiers that travel across platforms.
Kobi Gamiliel, VP of Partnerships & AI Ecosystem, Wix, said the ways people move through the internet are broadening again. "The way we interact with the internet is undergoing yet another transformative expansion. Search, social and now AI are all key drivers of information and innovation," Gamiliel said. "Success today means ensuring your digital identity is robust enough to serve as a beacon of trust across all these evolving discovery channels."