New study reveals the devastating effects of AI summaries for online publishers

A wave of alarm is sweeping through the online publishing industry as recent studies highlight the "devastating impact" of AI-generated summaries on website traffic. The findings suggest that AI-generated summaries are dramatically reducing clickthrough rates, especially for news sites and independent publishers that rely heavily on organic traffic for revenue and reach.

The cost of convenience

AI Overviews were introduced by Google to help users find information faster, using generative AI to summarize content from across the web into a compact, conversational snippet.

But that very convenience is proving costly for publishers.

According to new data from UK analytics firm Authoritas, websites that previously held the top spot in a search result are now seeing up to 79% fewer clicks if their link appears beneath an AI Overview.

A second study by the Pew Research Center reinforced these concerns, showing that users only clicked a link under an AI summary once every 100 searches, a staggeringly low engagement rate.

The data has prompted a formal complaint to the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), filed jointly by the tech justice group Foxglove, the Independent Publishers Alliance, and the Movement for an Open Web. They argue that Google’s use of AI is effectively monetizing publishers' work while cutting them off from their audiences.

Google pushes back

Google has dismissed the studies as flawed. A spokesperson said the Authoritas analysis was “inaccurate and based on flawed assumptions and outdated data,” and insisted that the Pew study relied on a “skewed queryset not representative of real-world search behavior.”

The company maintained that it still drives “billions of clicks to websites every day” and that AI features in search are expanding the ways users engage with the web: “People are gravitating to AI-powered experiences... creating new opportunities for websites to be discovered.”

Yet, publishers argue that Google has repeatedly refused to share the data needed to assess how AI summaries are affecting traffic. Critics say the lack of transparency is preventing media outlets from fully understanding or mitigating the damage.

A turning point for the web?

While AI Overviews currently appear on a subset of Google searches, the measurable impact has already sparked regulatory scrutiny and calls for urgent intervention.

The CMA is now under pressure to investigate whether Google’s AI rollout constitutes an abuse of market power, with some stakeholders warning of long-term consequences for journalism and the public's access to trustworthy information.

As the use of generative AI accelerates across tech platforms, the question remains: can a balance be struck between innovation and the sustainability of the open web, or will AI summaries become the latest existential threat to independent media?