How Deep Research Is Changing How Your Buyers Research and Buy

OpenAI just launched a new video discussing how AI agents and specifically Deep Research is transforming how consumers and businesses interact with AI.

It’s truly mind-blowing (see the full video below).

The way B2B buyers research and purchase solutions is evolving rapidly. With OpenAI’s new Deep Research tool, AI can conduct multi-step investigations, analyze numerous sources, and synthesize insights into detailed, unbiased reports in minutes.

This means your buyers will no longer rely solely on vendor marketing, sales reps, or traditional search engines. Instead, they’ll use AI-driven agents to make purchase decisions faster, more intelligently, and more confidently.

So, what does this mean for your business? Let’s break it down.

How B2B Buyers Will Use Deep Research

1. AI Will Gather and Analyze Competitive Insights

“Instead of spending hours manually searching and cross-referencing sources, Deep Research can do it in minutes—pulling, verifying, and structuring insights into a fully cited report, just like a human analyst would.”

Deep Research enables AI to conduct extensive investigations, uncover content, synthesize insights, and adapt its plan as it discovers more information. This means buyers receive comprehensive, unbiased reports at an unprecedented scale.

Instead of manually searching Google, reading case studies, or talking to sales reps, buyers will use AI agents like Deep Research to pull side-by-side product comparisons instantly. These reports will include:
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• Feature comparisons across multiple vendors

• Pricing analysis from various sources

• Customer sentiment based on real user reviews

• Market trends, adoption rates, and analyst reports
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Impact on You: If your competitive positioning isn’t clear, AI will surface weaknesses—whether from customer complaints, outdated specs, or missing capabilities. You must control your narrative or risk being filtered out of a buyer’s shortlist.

2. AI Will Prioritize Third-Party & Peer-Generated Content

“One of the limitations of past AI models is that they didn’t have access to tools like real-time web browsing. With Deep Research, AI can now conduct multi-step investigations, uncovering critical insights buyers need to make informed decisions.”

Buyers are skeptical of vendor messaging, and AI tools reinforce that skepticism by prioritizing external, independent sources when gathering insights. Instead of relying on your website copy, AI will pull from:
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• Analyst reports (e.g., Gartner, Forrester, IDC)

• Customer review platforms (e.g., G2, TrustRadius)

• Industry publications and thought leadership blogs

• Social media sentiment analysis
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Impact on You: If your company is not appearing in trusted third-party sources, AI may overlook your offering entirely. Getting featured in reports, customer review sites, and expert blogs is now a must to stay in the conversation.

3. AI-Driven Buyers Will Enter the Sales Process Later

“We’re entering a world where AI will do much of the heavy lifting in Research. Deep Research is designed to help businesses go deeper, think critically, and uncover information that traditional methods would miss.”

Because AI tools provide deep, pre-verified Research, buyers will enter sales conversations far more informed than before. Expect:
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• Fewer top-of-funnel inquiries—buyers will do their own due diligence first

• More precise, comparison-driven questions from sales-qualified leads

• Shorter sales cycles because much of the Research is already done
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Impact on You: Your sales team needs to adapt to a more informed buyer. Instead of educating prospects from scratch, they’ll need to address AI-generated insights head-on and overcome AI-identified objections.

4. The Best-Positioned Companies Will Win More Deals

“Deep Research isn’t just about finding information—it’s about reasoning, adapting, and building comprehensive answers. That’s going to change how buyers compare products, understand markets, and ultimately make purchase decisions.”

AI doesn’t just pull random information—it synthesizes insights to recommend the best-fit solutions based on defined criteria. Companies with strong, well-documented value propositions and clear competitive advantages will win more AI-filtered recommendations.

Impact on You: AI will evaluate your product based on what’s publicly available—not what’s buried in your sales deck. You need to ensure that:
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• Your product benefits and differentiators are clearly articulated in multiple sources

• Your customer case studies and success stories are easily findable online

• You’re actively refining your positioning so AI tools favor your offering over competitors

How to Stay Ahead in the AI-Driven Buying Journey

Invest in AI-optimized content

AI relies on publicly available data. Create research-backed whitepapers, competitor comparison guides, and case studies from which AI tools can pull. Content will be critical to making sure you can be found.

Own Your Narrative

If you’re not defining your positioning, AI will do it for you—using whatever data it can find. Make sure your messaging is clear, consistent, and differentiated. To see how we handle positioning at Mighty & True, access our free positioning and messaging template here.

Enhance SEO & Third-Party Visibility

AI scans industry sites, analyst reports, and independent blogs. Ensure your company appears in expert sources beyond just your own site.

Prepare Your Sales Team for AI-Educated Buyers

Buyers will come armed with AI-generated insights. Sales reps must be ready to discuss AI-produced comparisons, overcome AI-highlighted objections, and add value beyond what AI provides. Your account-based strategies will also need to evolve.

The Future of B2B Buying: Are You Ready for Deep Research?

Deep Research and similar AI tools aren’t just changing how buyers gather information—they’re reshaping how marketing, sales, and customer engagement must operate. For example, buyers are now entering sales conversations later in the process with AI-generated insights, making it essential for businesses to optimize their messaging for AI-driven research.

As OpenAI explains,

“Deep Research allows AI to conduct multi-step investigations, uncovering content, synthesizing insights, and adapting its plan as it discovers more information.”

This means b2b brands must rethink how they present their offerings in an AI-driven world.

Companies that embrace AI-informed marketing and sales strategies will capture more AI-driven demand. Those that don’t? They’ll struggle to stay visible in an AI-filtered world.
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Are you ready for the deep research-driven B2B buyer? If not, now is the time to take action. Brands that adapt to AI-driven Research will gain a competitive edge, while those that hesitate risk falling behind. Start optimizing your marketing strategy today to ensure your brand remains visible, relevant, and compelling in an AI-powered marketplace.
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Mighty & True can help advance your AI marketing efforts by ensuring your brand appears in AI-driven research, optimizing content for visibility, and refining your messaging to resonate with AI-informed buyers. Let’s future-proof your marketing together.

‍Contact us to learn more.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

‍‍How is AI changing the way B2B buyers research and purchase products?‍

AI tools like Deep Research allow buyers to conduct multi-step investigations, gather real-time insights, and compare vendors more efficiently than ever. This shift means buyers rely less on traditional marketing and sales processes and more on AI-driven reports.

What should businesses do to ensure they are visible in AI-driven research?

Companies must optimize their online presence by improving SEO, publishing high-quality third-party content, and ensuring they are featured in analyst reports, review platforms, and thought leadership blogs. Companies must optimize their online presence by improving SEO, publishing high-quality third-party content, and ensuring they are featured in analyst reports, review platforms, and thought leadership blogs.

How does Deep Research help buyers make better decisions?

Deep Research automates the research process, synthesizing information from multiple sources into structured, well-cited reports. This enables buyers to make data-driven purchasing decisions with more confidence and efficiency.

How can sales teams adapt to AI-informed buyers?

Sales teams must be prepared to engage with highly informed prospects. This means understanding AI-generated insights, addressing AI-surfaced objections, and providing deeper consultative selling approaches.

What are other AI research tools that businesses can use?

In addition to Deep Research, businesses can use the following AI-driven research tools:

• ‍Google’s Gemini Advanced – Google’s AI-powered assistant is evolving with enhanced research capabilities, integrating real-time search and multi-step reasoning to rival OpenAI’s Deep Research for more autonomous information gathering.‍
• Perplexity AI – A research-focused AI agent that generates well-cited, multi-source answers and adapts its search pathways based on evolving queries, positioning itself as a competitor in AI-driven knowledge synthesis.‍
• Microsoft Copilot (formerly Bing AI) – Microsoft’s AI integrates deep web browsing with an agentic research approach, allowing for more structured, multi-turn inquiries that enhance business intelligence.‍
• Consensus – AI specializing in academic and scientific research, using automated evidence-based retrieval to extract key insights, aiming to provide rigorous, AI-vetted decision support similar to Deep Research.
• ‍Deep Seek – A next-generation research assistant leveraging AI to conduct multi-layered investigations across various industries, refining search paths dynamically to enhance the quality of insights retrieved.

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