--- title: "Obi FAQ: AI search, setup, data and pricing | Obi" description: "Every question founders and GTM teams ask before they hire Obi, the AI Search Employee: how it works, setup, data, results and pricing." canonical: "https://hireobi.com/faq" human_url: "https://hireobi.com/faq" markdown_url: "https://hireobi.com/faq.md" updated: "2026-11-07" --- # Questions, answered. Everything founders and GTM teams ask before they hire Obi, with the answers our files support. ## Product ### What is Obi? Obi is the AI Search Employee that drives revenue. It learns your ICP, finds the missing pieces that get AI to recommend you to those buyers, and does the work end to end. ### Who is Obi for? Software startups, early stage first: founders, GTM and marketing teams who want the AI answers their buyers read to name them. ### How is Obi different from GEO dashboards? Dashboards report where you appear. Obi does the work: it starts from your ICP, asks the questions your buyers ask, finds the missing pieces AI needs, and writes them in your voice for your approval. ### Why is Obi called an employee? Because it works like a hire: it takes the goal, does the work and reports what moved. A dashboard shows you where you stand and leaves the work to you. ### How does Obi find my ICP? Obi reads what your website says and what you tell it, then proposes up to four segments: a buyer and the situation they are in. You confirm them before any question is written. ### Where do Obi's questions come from? From your ICP and the words your buyers use. Obi writes each question the way a buyer in that segment would ask an AI, then scores it by buyer impact. ### What is a missing piece? First-hand evidence or an explanation your buyers need and AI cannot find anywhere yet, like a page on how your product fits a 5-person team. Obi looks for it in your own data first and writes it in your voice. ### What does Obi deliver? Strategies and website work: the pages that close the gaps, checks that AI can reach and read your pages, and alerts when a third-party fact about you is out of date. You review and publish. ### Can Obi bring us pipeline, or only mentions? Obi works for the buyers who sign. Every question comes from your ICP and is scored by buyer impact, so the work goes where a recommendation can turn into a demo. Azops AI booked 10 demos from ChatGPT and Claude in six weeks. ## Setup ### Do I need to be technical to use Obi? No. You install Obi with one command, then talk to it in plain words in Claude Code, Codex or Cursor: type /obi and it asks which website to work on. It answers in your language. ### How do I install Obi? Run `npm i -g @hireobi/cli` in a terminal (Node.js 22 or later), then open your agent and type /obi. Obi asks which website to work on. ### Which agents does Obi work in? Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Windsurf, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Cline, Amp and OpenCode, and any terminal. ### Which language does Obi speak? Yours: Obi follows the language of your conversation. The questions it measures keep the market you chose. ### Does Obi publish anything without me? No. Every page Obi writes is a draft in your voice, and nothing goes live until you approve it. ### Does Obi keep working when my agent is closed? The scans of the AI engines keep running on Obi's servers. Research and writing happen in your agent, so they resume the next time you open Obi. ## Data and security ### What does Obi need access to? Your website's public pages, and your public competitors' with your OK. Obi asks once and requests only the private details a task needs; your secrets and the rest of your workspace stay on your machine. The AI engines' answers are measured on Obi's servers. ### Where are my credentials kept? In your system's credential store, or in an owner-only file you choose. The CLI never prints a token. ### Does Obi read my private files? Only the private extracts a task needs, with your agreement. Your secrets and the rest of your workspace stay on your machine. ### Who asks the AI engines? Obi's servers. Each scan asks the engines your buyers' questions and saves their answers; an answer your own agent writes never counts as a measurement. ## Results ### How fast will we see results? In weeks. Obi reports every week what moved on the engines and proposes the next move. Azops AI had never done SEO; in six weeks, ChatGPT and Claude brought them 10 booked demos. ### What does Obi do every week? On a core pack, Obi asks your buyers' questions again every week, shows what moved and proposes the next move; on the Free plan, once a month. A quiet week is reported as one. ### Does Obi guarantee a recommendation? No. AI engines decide what they cite and recommend. Obi does the work most likely to earn it, and every scan shows whether it did. ### What is the difference between a citation, a mention and a recommendation? A citation links your page as a source. A mention names your brand. A recommendation answers the buyer's question with you, and that is the one Obi works for. ### What results has Obi brought? Azops AI, an early-stage medtech startup, had never done SEO. In six weeks, ChatGPT and Claude brought them 10 booked demos, about $25K of estimated pipeline. ## Pricing ### Is Obi free? Yes, to start. The Free plan covers 10 questions on ChatGPT and Gemini, scanned once a month. ### How much does Obi cost? $20 a month per core pack: 25 questions on ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews, scanned every week. Claude adds $20 and Perplexity $10 per pack, each for up to 10 of those questions. ### Why is Obi cheaper than GEO platforms? Obi works inside the agent you already pay for, so its packs start at $20 a month, without credits or seats. Most GEO platforms start at $90 a month. ### Which AI engines are included? ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews in every pack. Claude and Perplexity are add-ons, each covering up to 10 questions per pack. ### Can Obi ask Claude and Perplexity? Yes, as add-ons per core pack: Claude for $20 a month and Perplexity for $10, each covering up to 10 of your questions. ### Are there credits or seats? No. You pay for core packs, and add Claude or Perplexity per pack when you want them. ### Does Obi use my agent's plan? Yes, for research and writing: they run in the agent you already use. The engine scans run on Obi's servers, and that is what the packs pay for. ### Where do I pay? In the product, where your account lives. This website takes no payment. ## Next actions - Hire for free: https://agent.heysurface.com - Compare the plans: https://hireobi.com/pricing.md - Read what Obi is: https://hireobi.com/index.md