While this algorithm was released in October 2015 very little was known about this until now…
In June 2016, Google was happy with RankBrain and rolled it out to 100% of all search queries.

If your reading this post then the chances are you have already witnessed google’s latest algorithm, welcome to RankBrain – Googles AI machine

What Is RankBrain and Why Is this Important?

So in none techie terms, simply put. RankBrain is an algorithm that helps Google with complex search queries.
It understands you queries and helps deliver results better based on your search.
Here comes the techie stuff.(stay with me its no so bad) The next step in Artificial Intelligence. Rankbrain is a highly complex computer learning system. Which monitors your queries and assesses what people do with the search results they are given, and from the huge variations and combinations of people’s response / actions applied to the given query, RankBrain can learn and understand what people actually mean when they search for something.

How Does RankBrain Work?

Let’s say you have an article on your website about Rock Climbing, and your content also covers mountaineering, ice climbing and let’s say bouldering; you will not rank for the search phrase “successful Rock Climbing”. The reason for this is because your article content covers too many sub-niches: –

Mountaineering
Ice Climbing
Bouldering

With RankBrain’s ability to “really” understand what a searcher is searching for, Google search results can be very selective about the pages it delivers for your query, because with RankBrain, Google now “really” understands what your page is about, and what your competitions page is about. This means that if your content is too generic and or broad, like the rock climbing example it may be unlikely that you will rank for that phrase.

Could RankBrain Penalise my site?

RankBrain is the add-on algorithm to the current Hummingbird engine. After analysing Google’s official announcements, a patent that’s related to RankBrain and what other experts thought about it. As far as we know, Rankbrain was not developed for this purpose. Google developed this algorithm to understand better and to develop an understanding of what people actually mean when they search for something. Not like other algorithms such as Penguin, Panda, Caffeine etc.

The Future and What it Means For SEO

SEO will become more complex and we have to rely a lot more on quality rather than technical SEO.
Addressing things like semantic web, LSI keywords and content readability becomes more important than ever. Having basic optimisation on your website just won’t cut it anymore. The future is changing for SEO. Adapting now to the changes will keep you ahead of your competition.

If more information becomes available about Rankbrain, I will update this post to reflect any news. Love or hate RankBrain? Let me know in the comment section below