Alan Cladx is a self-described black hat SEO who has been doing SEO since 1999 and building PBNs since 2004. In this Inside A Hustler’s Brain episode, the Alan Cladx 500,000 websites story covers how his team launches 1,000 sites a week, why indexation is his top metric, and why he says LLM SEO is only 10-20% of the effort.
More than half a million websites. One person on his team can launch 1,000 of them in a week.
In the latest episode of Inside A Hustler’s Brain, I sat down at the Phuket summit with Alan Cladx, a self-described black hat SEO who has been doing SEO since 1999 and building PBNs since 2004. 🎙️ I’ve never met anyone else who owns this many sites.
Alan was surprisingly open about his process, his views on AI and the mistakes that kill websites.
Quick Facts: Alan Cladx
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Guest | Alan Cladx |
| Describes himself as | A black hat SEO |
| Doing SEO since | 1999 |
| Building PBNs since | 2004 |
| Websites owned | More than 500,000 (his claim) |
| New sites per week | Around 1,000 to 2,000 |
| Team size | About 12 people |
| Time per site | About 1 minute 30 seconds |
| Top metric | Indexation speed |
| LLM SEO share | 10-20% of effort at most |
| Recorded at | The Phuket summit |
| Host | Jitendra Vaswani |
| Podcast | Inside A Hustler’s Brain (YouTube) |
Watch the Full Alan Cladx 500,000 Websites Episode
In This Episode, We Unpacked
- SEO in 1999 vs SEO with AI today
- Why AI is “like a knife”
- His take on AEO and GEO
- 500,000+ sites, 12 people and 90 seconds per site
- Why indexation is his number one metric
- Why LLM SEO should be 10-20% of the effort
- The biggest mistake when scaling SEO
- Family, being self-taught and becoming an extrovert
How Has SEO Changed Since 1999? Alan Cladx on SEO Then and Now
Alan started in 1999, back when black hat tricks worked freely because there were almost no filters. Penguin in 2012 changed that, followed by many updates.
His surprising observation: what they did in 2011, they can do with AI today. “It’s like we come back to the source.”
Does AI change SEO? Not much, he says, but it makes people lazy, and lazy people disappear, which means less competition.
“AI is like a knife. If you give this knife to a chef, he can make amazing dishes. If you put this knife in the wrong hands, they destroy their website.” – Alan Cladx
Are AEO and GEO Different From SEO? Alan Cladx Says “Everything Is SEO”
For Alan, AEO and GEO are just rebrands: “Don’t forget, search engine optimization.” Whether it’s Google or an AI chatbot, it’s still a search engine you’re optimising for. He thinks the new names mostly help people sell the same service at a higher price.
He calls himself black hat because he loves reverse engineering algorithms to find their limits. His approach is to test every idea, including the ones that fail. Without a technical approach, he says, ranking is like lighting a candle in church and hoping.
For a different view on ranking in AI search, read Anirudh Agarwal on ranking inside ChatGPT.
How Does Alan Cladx Run 500,000+ Websites?
What is a PBN here?
PBN is the term for the kind of site network Alan Cladx says he has been building since 2004. In his operation, each site is a standalone ecosystem built from varied templates and footprints, with no ads and nothing for sale.
Alan owns more than half a million websites. Here’s how the operation works, in his words:
- They create around 1,000 to 2,000 websites a week
- The team is about 12 people. One dedicated person can create 1,000 sites a week
- Each site takes about 1 minute 30 seconds: SSL, FTP, database, CMS install, varied templates and footprints
- Domain renewals are the biggest expense, roughly €50,000 to €70,000 (as heard in the recording)
- He sticks to strong TLDs and avoids cheap alternative ones he considers filtered
He keeps a human part in the process on purpose. Human mistakes make sites look natural: “In the mistake, you make the validation of the perfection.”
Which Niches Do the Sites Serve?
The sites follow client demand across niches like gambling, finance, insurance, DIY and travel. One client recently ordered 2,000 gambling sites for Latin America. He doesn’t put ads on the sites or sell anything, so there’s no footprint, and he uses his own network as a testing playground.
For more on expired and aged domains, read Odys CEO Alex Drew on why aged domains matter.
Why Does Indexation Beat DR? Alan Cladx’s Number One Metric
What is indexation?
Indexation is whether a search engine has added your page to its index. For Alan Cladx, it is the first metric that matters: if the article isn’t indexed, nothing else, including DR, matters.
People talk about DR and other authority metrics, but Alan’s first metric is indexation speed: if the article isn’t indexed, nothing else matters.
He thinks the future looks tough. With so much AI-generated content, search engines may become lazy about indexing, and in a year or two it could become very hard to index lots of pages.
He uses several indexing tools and gave a shout-out to his friend Stefan’s tool, Index Me Now, which I’ve also used.
How Does Alan Cladx Use AI? 70-80% of His Process
AI is now 70-80% of his process: scraping, coding single-page tests, and reporting that would take humans hours but takes AI about 10 minutes.
His favourite tool changes almost weekly, but he mentioned Claude for coding and Gemini for content, and said he pays most for GPT because more people use it. The real lesson: test constantly, because the best tool today may not be the best in two weeks.
For more on SEO in the AI era, read Adam Chronister on SEO agency success in the LLM era.
Why Is LLM SEO Only 10-20% of the Effort, According to Alan Cladx?
This was Alan’s boldest business take. AI chatbots are great for brand comparisons, but people don’t shop there. “No one will buy a pen on GPT or Gemini today.”
When clients ask for a 50/50 split between SEO and AI visibility, he tells them 10-20% maximum for AI, mainly for brand ego, because people still buy through search.
His link approach: he never interlinks his own sites and doesn’t buy backlinks in bulk. Each site stays a standalone ecosystem with no footprint. He didn’t share more details on camera.
What Is the Biggest Mistake When Scaling SEO?
What is over-optimisation?
In Alan Cladx’s example, it means going too fast with links, such as buying 1,000 backlinks in one day. He calls it the worst idea ever to kill your website.
Over-optimisation, or buying 1,000 backlinks in one day: “the worst idea ever to kill your website.”
People are too hungry, he says. They think more money means faster results, but in SEO if you go too fast, you fall down. “It’s like love. You have to take time.”
Why does he speak at conferences? He loves to travel and share. He thinks the market is huge, so everyone can win, and being open shows clients how many steps real SEO takes.
For another aggressive SEO perspective, read Charles Floate on parasite SEO.
Money, Family and Becoming an Extrovert: Alan Cladx’s Personal Side
Surprisingly, Alan says he pays himself only about €2,200 a month and keeps the rest in the company. Some gambling clients pay €200,000-300,000 a month. He diversifies across crypto, forex and property: “never keep everything in the same basket.”
Money, he says, is just a tool. What matters most is his son. His biggest fear is something happening to him, and with 24 hours left he’d switch off his phone and go to the beach with him.
He has no single hero. Life is a wheel, and real entrepreneurs prove themselves by coming back after they go down. Asked who he’d bring back, he joked “Jesus Christ”, just to see what would happen, while adding he isn’t religious.
He started as a total introvert, coding alone in a basement until about 2012-2013. Friends pushed him to speak at events, and now he tells everyone: go to an event, sit with someone you don’t know and say hello. A whole world opens up.
Key Takeaways From the Alan Cladx 500,000 Websites Interview
- AI amplifies skill. In the wrong hands, it destroys sites
- AEO and GEO are still SEO
- Indexation is the first metric to watch
- Search still drives purchases. Keep LLM SEO in proportion
- Scaling too fast with links is the fastest way to kill a site
- Test everything, and keep testing as tools change weekly
- Go to events and start conversations
- Never keep everything in the same basket
FAQs About Alan Cladx and His 500,000+ Websites
Alan Cladx is a black hat SEO practitioner who has been doing SEO since 1999 and building PBNs since 2004. He says he owns more than 500,000 websites.
He says his team creates around 1,000-2,000 websites a week, with each site taking about 1 minute 30 seconds to set up.
Indexation speed. He says an article that isn't indexed is worthless, whatever its DR.
He recommends keeping AI or LLM visibility to about 10-20% of effort, because people still buy through traditional search.
Over-optimisation, such as buying 1,000 backlinks in one day. He says going too fast in SEO makes you fall.
Final Thoughts on the Alan Cladx 500,000 Websites Story
The Alan Cladx 500,000 websites story is about testing, speed and discipline. Treat AI as a knife that needs a skilled hand, watch indexation first, keep LLM SEO in proportion, and don’t scale links too fast. As Alan puts it, SEO is like love: you have to take time.
If this conversation with Alan Cladx gave you even one idea, share it with a friend who needs it today. One conversation can change someone’s life.
More Inside A Hustler’s Brain Interviews You’ll Love
- How To Rank #1 for Big Keywords on Google By Steve Tot
- How AI KILLED 80% of His Affiliate Income ft. Anil Agarwal Every Affiliate Marketer Must Watch
- How To Grow A 7-Figure SEO Agency That Runs Itself by Rafid Nassir
- Interview with Koray Tuğberk on AI and Programmatic SEO Secrets
If this conversation with Alan Cladx gave you even one idea, share it with a friend who needs it today. One conversation can change someone’s life.
Subscribe & Follow Jitendra Vaswani Everywhere
Subscribe to Inside A Hustler’s Brain on YouTube and Follow Jitendra Vaswani on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, everywhere.
Jitendra Vaswani is a globally recognized expert in SEO and AI-driven digital marketing. He has spoken at leading international events and is the founder of Digiexe, a results-driven digital marketing agency; Venuelabs, a platform that helps brands amplify their voice with expert PR and marketing solutions; and AffiliateBooster, an affiliate marketing news site. With over a decade of hands-on experience, Jitendra has empowered countless businesses to thrive online. His bestselling book, Inside A Hustler’s Brain: In Pursuit of Financial Freedom, has sold more than 20,000 copies worldwide, reflecting his influence and dedication to helping digital marketers achieve success. Follow Jitendra on Instagram, X/Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.