Stop claiming you're the best! AI will mark you down for it | Tom Rudnai on winning influence in the age of Dark AI

In this episode of Trust and Influence in B2B Marketing, Joel Harrison sits down with Tom Rudnai, Founder of Demand Genius and author of the Dark AI study — a research project that analyzed hundreds of AI prompt clusters across major B2B categories to map where brands are truly winning and losing influence. Tom's central finding is as counterintuitive as it is urgent: the more boldly a brand claims to be the best, the more likely AI is to quietly sideline it during the buyer conversations that shape outcomes. So where is influence actually earned in an AI-led world — and what should B2B marketers be doing differently?

➡️ Tom cuts through the noise with sharp, data-grounded thinking on why AI is not a search channel — and why treating it like one is one of the most costly mistakes in B2B marketing today. He introduces the "Dark AI" concept: the 84% of buyer conversations where no brand gets cited, yet where the problem framing, requirements, and shortlist criteria are already being quietly formed. He unpacks how AI enters exploratory mode at the top of the funnel — and why confident, directive brand language fails at the exact moment influence is most available. He also lays out the concept of information gain, arguing that original research, clear perspectives, and genuinely new knowledge are now the highest-value signals a brand can produce. From convergence patterns to what to actually measure, this conversation will challenge how you think about authority, content, and trust in modern B2B.

Chapters:

00:00 - Introduction: Why Bold Positioning Can Backfire in AI Search

02:08 - Tom's Background and the Story Behind Demand Genius

03:59 - How Buyers Use AI Differently from Traditional Search

06:16 - The Dark AI Study: What It Measured and What It Found

10:30 - AI Visibility vs. AI Influence: The Iceberg Explained

13:18 - Convergence: How AI Narrows Down to a Recommendation

18:38 - Information Gain: The New North Star for B2B Content

22:11 - Why Confident Category Claims Fail in AI-Led Journeys

25:28 - What B2B Marketers Should Actually Be Measuring