How Google's AI tools are crushing news publishers
What's the story
Google's artificial intelligence (AI) Overviews and other AI-driven tools, including chatbots, are wreaking havoc on news publishers' website traffic.
The issue stems from the fact that users can now directly ask a chatbot for answers, often using news content without adequate credit or compensation to the publisher.
This has led to a significant drop in referrals to news sites, threatening their sustainability and quality journalism.
Traffic decline
AI Overviews and AI mode are already affecting traffic
Google's AI Overviews, a tool that summarizes search results, was launched last year.
The feature has already affected traffic to sites providing vacation guides, health tips, and product reviews.
Now, with the launch of AI Mode—Google's answer to ChatGPT—traffic is expected to take an even bigger hit as it provides conversational responses with fewer external links.
Impact on publishers
NYT's share of traffic from Google drops over 7%
The New York Times saw its share of traffic from organic search to its desktop and mobile sites drop to 36.5% in April 2025, down from 44% in 2022.
This is a clear indication of the impact AI Overviews and AI Mode are having on news publishers' website traffic.
Industry response
Publishers entering content-sharing agreements with AI companies
In light of these changes, publishers like The Atlantic and The Washington Post have stressed the need for the industry to quickly adapt its business models.
Some have even entered content-sharing agreements with AI companies as a new revenue stream.
For instance, The Times recently partnered with Amazon to license its editorial content for training the tech giant's AI platforms.
Industry concerns
Expect decline in traffic from Google, warns The Atlantic CEO
Nicholas Thompson, CEO of The Atlantic, warned employees earlier this year to expect a drastic decline in traffic from Google over time.
He said "Google is shifting from being a search engine to an answer engine," and stressed the need for new strategies.
This sentiment was echoed by Washington Post CEO William Lewis who called the replacement of links with AI-generated summaries "a serious threat to journalism."
Google's stance
Google says its AI tools still drive traffic to websites
Despite the backlash, Google has defended its AI tools, claiming they still drive traffic to news sites.
A company spokesperson said, "Every day, we send billions of clicks to websites... New experiences like AI Overviews and AI Mode enhance Search and expand the types of questions people can ask."
However, critics have accused Google and other tech giants of using news content without proper credit or compensation for training their chatbots.