Google’s AI-powered overhaul of Search may revolutionize user experience, but critics warn it could devastate web traffic and jeopardize the future of the open internet.
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| Google’s AI Mode could mark the dawn of the “machine web”—a search experience shaped by chatbots, not clicks, raising fears for publishers and content creators. Image: Collected |
Tech Desk — June 16, 2025:
A seismic shift is underway in how the world navigates the internet—and Google is leading the charge. At its I/O developer conference on May 20, 2025, Google CEO Sundar Pichai unveiled “AI Mode,” a groundbreaking feature that promises to reimagine online search with real-time chatbot-style responses. But while the tech giant touts innovation, critics warn this new direction could dismantle the open web as we know it.
Traditionally, the relationship between websites and search engines has been symbiotic: sites allow indexing, and in return, Google drives billions of users to them, sustaining countless publishers through advertising and commerce. That model may be nearing its end.
AI Mode, unlike previous iterations such as AI Overviews, provides full conversational answers directly within the search page, reducing the need for users to click on external links. With Google controlling over 90% of global search traffic, this could prove catastrophic for independent content creators, publishers, and businesses that rely heavily on search visibility.
“Millions of websites could be affected,” said Lily Ray, SEO strategist at Amsive. “If AI Mode becomes the default, organic traffic could collapse—Google holds all the power.”
Though Google argues that AI Mode broadens discovery and improves engagement, its critics remain skeptical. The company has yet to release data proving that AI-enhanced features increase traffic to third-party sites. Studies suggest otherwise: click-through rates have dropped by up to 70% for some queries, and over 60% of searches now end without a single click.
The shift is already being felt. Gisele Navarro, editor of the independent review site HouseFresh, said their search impressions are up—but real clicks are down. “We’re losing the ability to connect with readers,” she warned. “AI answers are replacing us.”
At stake is more than traffic—it’s the vitality of the open web. Experts fear that if content is created solely to feed algorithms, rather than human audiences, the internet could morph into a homogenized, AI-filtered echo chamber. This evolving ecosystem, dubbed the “machine web,” could diminish the diversity, spontaneity, and discovery that defined the early days of the web.
Barry Adams of Polemic Digital is blunt: “Websites won’t go extinct, but many will be decimated. This is a paradigm shift.”
Google maintains it supports the content ecosystem, pointing to its commitment to sending billions of daily clicks and its assertion that AI Overviews enhance engagement. But for many small and mid-sized publishers, the damage is already unfolding—and survival feels uncertain.
In 2024, Google introduced the TruSense health monitoring system and has rapidly pushed innovation across its platforms. Yet some believe AI Mode’s advancement reflects a broader trend: optimizing the web for machines rather than people.
“Google made the rules for years. Now they’re rewriting them without warning,” said Navarro. “This could destroy the open web—and maybe it already has.”
What follows may not be the end of the internet, but the beginning of something new. As users become increasingly accustomed to chatbot interactions and machine-curated answers, the question remains: Will the web remain a space for exploration, or will it become a sleek, sterile stream of automated summaries?
As Pichai noted, “It depends on what users want.” But if the shift continues unchecked, it may soon be too late to choose.