Abel Communications joins Brandi AI to boost AI visibility

Abel Communications is betting that the next agency growth lane sits where reputation and search meet. By joining Brandi AI’s Global Agency Partnership Program, the Baltimore public relations firm is adding generative-search optimization and AI discoverability to its earned media, thought leadership and content strategy work, with the goal of helping clients surface in AI-generated answers across ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Perplexity.

The move fits a broader shift Brandi AI has been pushing since it launched the program on Oct. 23, 2025. Brandi said the initiative was built to help marketing, PR, content, market strategy and branding agencies turn AI visibility and Generative Engine Optimization into a scalable and profitable service line. At the time, the company said more than a dozen agencies were already using the platform and that 78% of agency clients lacked the core visibility signals that drive AI discovery.

For Abel, the partnership is less a side experiment than a packaging strategy. The firm’s website now uses the headline, “Why Earned Media Now Impacts AI Visibility More Than Ads,” a clear signal that it is folding AI visibility into the way it sells communications counsel. Jessica Fast said Brandi gives the agency insight into how brands appear across AI-generated answers and why they do or do not show up, underscoring the practical goal: translate media coverage into measurable visibility inside model-driven platforms.

That framing also reflects how agencies are trying to grow without splitting into disconnected silos. The opportunity is no longer just media relations or SEO in isolation, but a single offer built around brand authority, earned media and AI search readiness. Brandi positions the partnership program as a way to help agencies strengthen trust, recognition and visibility in AI-generated answers, which makes the service line feel more like ongoing counsel than a one-off technical add-on.

Abel has room to scale that pitch. Greg Abel founded the firm in 2005 after more than a dozen years in journalism, sports marketing, corporate communications and agency public relations. In December 2025, the agency said it was celebrating its 20th year and had added seven new client partners, including the CASH Campaign of Maryland, Wunsupona, the Maryland Center for History and Culture, Jay’s Catering, Baltimore School for the Arts, ProTalent and The League for People with Disabilities. Its Baltimore office is at 100 W. Monument St., Baltimore, MD 21201, and the firm describes itself as a PR and marketing shop focused on media relations, thought leadership, social and digital, creative services, research and brand messaging, and strategic partnerships.

The partnership shows where communications firms are headed in 2026: not just chasing placements or rankings, but helping brands become the names AI systems trust to repeat.