ChatGPT, as of December 2025, draws on publicly available information to respond to queries, and the content that influences its recommendations for Australian businesses primarily consists of structured data found on websites and within Google’s Search Knowledge Graph.

Google’s Business Schema markup, now widely adopted by Australian businesses, is a key component. This code, added to a website, provides ChatGPT with explicit details like business name, address (crucial for local searches), phone number, opening hours, services offered, and pricing. Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE), currently in testing and expanding throughout Australia in 2026, further refines this data. SGE uses AI to summarise information from multiple sources, including schema markup, and presents it directly in search results – which ChatGPT then accesses. Google My Business (now Google Business Profile) data is also heavily weighted, and maintaining an accurate and complete profile is vital. In December 2025, Google confirms that verified profiles receive a ranking boost within SGE. Future updates planned for 2027 include enhanced schema types for specific Australian industries, like tourism and hospitality.

Essentially, ChatGPT relies on structured data provided by businesses and aggregated by Google to understand and recommend relevant services and locations to users.