Google's Mueller: AI crawlers aren't requesting markdown
Responding to a r/TechSEO question about whether markdown files ease AI bot load, Google’s John Mueller said that on his own test sites, “the only crawlers who claim to accept markdown are SEO tools” — not major AI bots — per Search Engine Journal. Mueller advised site owners to log crawler accept headers and check the metrics before building markdown versions of their pages on the assumption AI crawlers want them.
Why it matters: It's data-backed pushback against markdown-for-AI as a default AEO tactic, arriving while llms.txt's spec formalizes markdown discovery and a publisher is already selling ads inside its markdown pages.
The record: Google
Glossary: SEOAI crawlers
Posted to the wire August 31, 2026.