Additional research has emerged concerning the effects of AI Overviews on reducing publisher traffic, despite Google’s ongoing denial of this phenomenon. A study from the Pew Research Center revealed that Google’s AI-generated summaries positioned at the top of search pages markedly diminished outbound clicks to other websites. In this research, 900 adults from the U.S. provided insights into their browsing behavior. Notable findings include:

– Users of Google who encountered an AI Overview clicked through to other websites 8% of the time, which is nearly half the rate of those who did not see an AI Overview (15%).
– There was a higher tendency for users to conclude their browsing sessions after coming across an AI Overview, with sessions ending on 26% of pages compared to 16% without the AI summaries.
– A mere 1% of users who saw an AI Overview clicked on a cited link within the summary.

The study, which was first published in May and later updated with further analysis, resonates with the worries expressed by publishers since the rollout of AI Overviews last year. The AI-generated summaries have altered the necessity for users to click on individual sites listed in Google search results for information. The occurrence of these summaries being incorrect or fabricated adds another layer of concern.

According to data from SimilarWeb, organic search traffic from prominent news organizations such as the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and The Washington Post has diminished. Smaller, independent websites have reported that AI Overviews have compelled them to either cease operations or overhaul their distribution strategies due to dwindling traffic, as highlighted in a Bloomberg report. Additional findings from SEO analysts indicated that AI Overviews led to reduced clicks to sites in comparison to traditional search outcomes.

Google’s leadership has repeatedly refuted these assertions, indicating that they have not detected any changes in outbound clicks. Robby Stein, VP of product for Google Search, stated in a May interview with Mashable that variations could stem from numerous causes and that they analyze data in aggregate rather than targeting specific publishers.

In remarks to The Verge, CEO Sundar Pichai responded to the traffic decline claims by asserting that the traffic is being directed to a wider array of sources, and while some entities might experience diminished visibility, more content is being highlighted.

In light of the Pew findings, Google informed The Register that they consider the study to employ a “flawed methodology and skewed queryset that is not representative of Search traffic,” emphasizing that they consistently guide billions of clicks to websites every day and have not noted any substantial declines in overall web traffic as implied.