IRefer Club launches 15-day AI visibility trial in Vancouver

By AI, Created 5:03 PM UTC, May 18, 2026, /AGP/ – IRefer Club is offering local businesses a limited 15-day trial during Web Summit Vancouver 2026 to help them improve Google visibility and show up more clearly in AI-powered search results. The Canadian startup says the push is aimed at small businesses that need structured digital signals to be found by both search engines and tools like ChatGPT and Gemini.

Why it matters: - Small businesses are competing in search results shaped by Google, AI assistants, and voice tools. - IRefer Club is targeting that shift with a trial designed to help local businesses improve discoverability without needing a full in-house SEO operation. - The pitch matters because the company is framing AI visibility as a local sales problem, not just a marketing one.

What happened: - IRefer Club arrived in Vancouver for Web Summit Vancouver 2026 and opened a limited 15-day trial for local businesses from May 11 to May 17, 2026. - The company will be at ALPHA 2, Booth A2-28 on Thursday, May 14. - The startup plans to introduce business owners, media, and attendees to its platform for SEO visibility and AI search discovery. - IRefer Club is based in Ontario, Canada, and is participating in Web Summit Vancouver 2026 through the ALPHA Startup program.

The details: - IRefer Club says the platform helps local businesses get found on Google and appear more clearly when customers ask AI tools for product or service recommendations. - The company is focused on AI search optimization, local business visibility, and Generative Engine Optimization, or GEO. - The platform combines traditional SEO with AI-focused GEO strategies. - The company says its system can help even businesses without a website by structuring the information search systems need to understand them. - The technology is called C.A.I.T.L.Y.N., short for Comprehensive Artificial Intelligence Targeted Location Yield Network. - IRefer Club says C.A.I.T.L.Y.N. organizes business information so search engines and AI systems can understand it more easily. - The company also uses a Digital Handshake framework to connect a business’s services, location, and online presence more consistently across platforms. - During the trial, businesses can explore how the platform starts improving online visibility and AI search readiness. - After the trial, the service costs $25 per month. - IRefer Club also works with Champions, community-based connectors who bring local businesses onto the platform. - Champions may receive recurring monthly compensation while referred businesses remain active with IRefer Club.

Between the lines: - The launch reflects a broader shift in how customers search, with more people asking AI tools direct questions instead of typing classic keyword searches. - IRefer Club is betting that local businesses will pay for help translating their real-world presence into machine-readable signals. - Dean Jessop, CEO of IRefer Club, said many local businesses are invisible in search because AI systems are not always certain who they are, what they do, where they operate, or whether they are the right answer. - Jessop said the goal is to make it easier for small businesses to be seen when people are ready to buy.

What’s next: - IRefer Club will continue showcasing the platform at Web Summit Vancouver on May 14. - Local businesses that join the trial can continue on the platform after the 15-day period for a monthly fee. - The company appears to be using Web Summit to build awareness, recruit early users, and expand its local referral network.

The bottom line: - IRefer Club is making AI search visibility the core product for local businesses that want to show up in both Google results and AI-generated recommendations. - The Vancouver launch puts the startup in front of the small-business audience most likely to feel the pain of changing search behavior.