Every week a new SEO tool seems to launch. Another dashboard, another subscription, another promise to save time.
For years, that's just how the industry worked. If you wanted better data, you paid for another platform.
Lately, though, I've started wondering if AI is changing that equation.
A few days ago I came across a post from someone who built a simple rank tracker in just a few minutes using an open-source project, Claude and a data provider. The tracker itself wasn't what caught my attention.
What interested me was the idea behind it.
Maybe we're reaching a point where the real question isn't "Which SEO tool should I buy?"
Maybe it's "What SEO tool do I actually need?"
Those are two very different questions.
Most of us don't use 100% of the features included in expensive SEO platforms. We use the same reports every week, check the same metrics and follow almost identical workflows.
AI changes that.
Instead of adapting the way we work to fit a tool, we can start building tools that fit the way we work.
Imagine creating a dashboard that combines exactly what you need:
- Google Search Console
- Analytics
- Keyword rankings
- AI visibility
- Brand mentions
- Reddit discussions
- X activity
Nothing more. Nothing less.
Will this replace platforms like Ahrefs or Semrush tomorrow? Probably not.
But I do think we'll see more SEO professionals building small, focused tools for themselves instead of paying for features they'll never use.
In a way, AI isn't just helping us create content.
It might be helping us create the next generation of SEO tools too.