Squarespace Debuts ‘AI-Powered Business Partner’ Beacon

Squarespace has introduced what it calls an “AI-powered business partner” for entrepreneurs.

Squarespace Beacon AI, announced by the website design platform Tuesday (Sept. 30), is part of a group of products, features and updates under the company’s “Refresh 2025” banner.

“At Squarespace, we know entrepreneurs are navigating a complex digital landscape and looking for guidance on how to get discovered and grow,” Paul Gubbay, chief product officer at Squarespace, said in a news release provided to PYMNTS.

“With Refresh 2025, we are expanding our product suite by combining design expertise with AI-powered tools to make it easier to run a business while maintaining an authentic brand.”

Among these tools is Squarespace Beacon AI, designed to help entrepreneurs with things like listing creations, sales and market automation.

“Whether planning a product launch or identifying new growth opportunities, Squarespace Beacon AI provides recommendations at every step,” the release said.

And with artificial intelligence (AI)-powered search results changing the way consumers find businesses, Squarespace is expanding its search engine optimization (SEO) offerings with new AI Optimization (AIO) tools, designed to help businesses improve both traditional and AI-related visibility and search rankings “without compromising their design integrity.”

As PYMNTS has written, many smaller businesses are turning to artificial intelligence-powered tools to help them compete with their larger counterparts.

Earlier this year, Verizon Business’ 2025 State of Small Business Survey found that 38% of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) had begun integrating AI into their operations.

More than a quarter of those businesses said they were deploying AI for marketing and social media, with 24% using it for written communications. Almost a quarter turn to AI to power digital personal assistants that can help with customer service, while other uses include cybersecurity and hiring and retention of workers.

“Smaller businesses can’t compete with bigger businesses on scale — so they need to compete on smarts,” Mary Kay Bowman, executive vice president and general manager of payments and financial services at software provider BILL, said in an interview with PYMNTS.

“The smartest thing small businesses can do is use AI to unlock top-tier finance expertise and tools that were only ever available to enterprise companies.”

Bowman added that the best AI tools for SMBs aren’t flashy tech add-ons but are constructed with the needs of small businesses in mind.

“Silicon Valley needs to be delivering AI that actually delivers tangible outcomes that small businesses need: saving time, improving accuracy, and freeing up bandwidth to focus on growth,” she told PYMNTS.

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