Photo coming soon
Speaker · May 2026
Saïd Business School, Oxford
Skills Live Show 2026 panel speaker on AI visibility for UK SMEs.
Verify →The person behind AEO-REX
One of the UK's first dedicated Answer Engine Optimisation consultancies for small businesses, founded in Birmingham, run by one person who does the work herself.
Why AEO-REX exists
AI search is changing how customers find UK businesses. In 2026 over 800 million people each week ask ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and Claude for recommendations before they buy. Most UK SMEs do not know whether AI search recommends them or quietly skips them in favour of a competitor.
AEO-REX is the alternative. One of the UK's first dedicated Answer Engine Optimisation consultancies built for small and medium businesses. Founded in Birmingham in 2026. Productised. Plain English. Founder-led.
"I built AEO-REX because someone needed to. Small businesses are the engine of the UK economy and they were getting left out of AI search entirely."
Shanaz Begum, FounderShanaz is a Physics lecturer at BMet College Birmingham. She is a single mum of three. She works full time on a single salary. There are no investors, no business partner, no safety net. AEO-REX was built in evenings, at weekends, and on school holidays.
Before AEO-REX, Shanaz spent over a decade as an internationally certified Les Mills and Beachbody fitness instructor, delivering the Insanity programme. The same discipline that built that fitness career now goes into every audit, every schema implementation, every citation strategy.
"AI didn't replace me. It gave a council estate mum from Birmingham a fighting chance to compete with London agencies."
Shanaz Begum, FounderThe result is a consultancy built specifically for UK SMEs, run by someone who knows the territory. Productised services tailored on a free discovery call. No big retainers. No outsourcing. No juniors. Shanaz does the work herself, which is also why the calendar is capped.
The full story, the council estate, the doubters, the moment AEO clicked, is in the From physics teacher to AEO founder blog post.
VERIFIED CREDENTIALS · 2026
The receipts
Publicly verifiable record of speaking engagements, media, awards, and academic affiliations. Photos to follow as the press archive is published.
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Media · January 2026
Islam Channel Today Show
Live broadcast on how UK small businesses can become visible inside ChatGPT and AI search.
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Media · 7 May 2026
The Entrepreneur Show, TVOne London
Guest on the UK entrepreneur programme, broadcast 7 May 2026 on TVOne London, Sky Channel 781.
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Award · 2026
Islam Channel Business Awards 2026
Finalist, Khadijah RA Female Led Business of the Year.
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Speaker · Member · 2026
Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce
Speaker on AEO at the GBCC speaker series and chamber member.
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Speaker · 2026
Redbridge Chamber of Commerce
East London Business Expo speaker. Highly Commended for AEO innovation.
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Lecturer · 2026
BMet College Birmingham
Physics lecturer. AI literacy workshop programme for Birmingham adults.
Read more →
OFFICIAL RECORD
Registrations and verification
UK Trademark
UK00004369414 · Filed 6 April 2026
Classes 9, 35, 41, 42
Founded
2026 · Birmingham, UK
Serving SMEs nationwide
About AEO-REX and the founder
Shanaz Begum founded AEO-REX in Birmingham, United Kingdom. She is a Physics lecturer at BMet College and one of the UK's first dedicated Answer Engine Optimisation consultants for small businesses.
Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO) is the practice of making a business visible and recommended by AI tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Google AI Overviews. AEO-REX is one of the UK's first consultancies dedicated to AEO for small and medium businesses.
Birmingham, West Midlands, United Kingdom. AEO-Rex Ltd is registered at Companies House (number 17018571). The team is remote-first and serves SMEs across the UK.
Yes. AEO-REX is a UK registered trademark (UK00004369414) filed at the UK Intellectual Property Office on 6 April 2026, covering Classes 9, 35, 41, and 42.
Yes. AEO-REX is founder-led. Shanaz does the audits, citation work, and schema implementation personally. No junior team, no outsourcing. The trade-off is a deliberate cap on cohort size.
WORK WITH SHANAZ
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