Small websites are suffering! Google's new AI search system has triggered a "content crisis," leaving creators in despair.

From traffic king to search edge dweller, in the blink of an eye, the fate of website operators has completely turned upside down. With Google Search introducing the AI Overviews feature, countless small and medium-sized websites that rely on traffic for their livelihood have fallen into a deep freeze. Some creators describe this traffic disaster as a "betrayal," as not only has their income fallen, but it has also shattered the trust and link they have built with their readers over the years.

AI "buzz-in" causes traffic avalanche? Website operators angrily point to Google

According to Bloomberg, in March 2024, content creator Morgan McBride was still filming a Google advertisement, sharing how the search engine helped her DIY website "Charleston Crafted" thrive. Little did she know that less than a month after the ad went live, her website's Google search traffic would fall by more than 70%.

"We have weathered past algorithm updates, but this time is different; there has been no recovery at all," McBride pointed out. He noted that more and more renovation suggestions are coming directly from the AI answer box at the top of Google search, causing users to no longer click on the original website content.

She is not the only victim. According to 25 website operators and media consultants interviewed by Bloomberg, most pointed out that Google's AI content summarization feature is undermining the traffic ecosystem built over many years.

The symbiotic relationship is broken, yet Google's own AI often makes mistakes?

In the past, as long as high-quality content was created, traffic rewards could be obtained from Google, forming a virtuous cycle. But now this model is on shaky ground. Creators have found that traffic is no longer pouring in, and even the accuracy of AI-generated content is concerning, sometimes recommending nonexistent products, and at times even providing incorrect or potentially dangerous DIY instructions.

Although Google denies that AI Overviews is the main reason for the traffic fall, claiming that such conclusions are "overgeneralized," a survey by the data analysis company Similarweb shows that the AI summary feature may indeed be related to the sudden drop in traffic.

Advertising revenue halved, website shutdown wave emerges

McBride stated that Charleston Crafted's advertising revenue has decreased by 65% after a drop in traffic, resulting in losses of tens of thousands of dollars. She even once doubted whether she could continue to make a living from content creation: "On some days, I simply didn't want to get out of bed."

The founders of the travel website "The Planet D" have announced a halt in updates, as website traffic has dropped by ninety percent since the launch of AI Overviews. The husband-and-wife founders lamented, "We used to provide these travel recommendations, and now Google's AI is using them, even mimicking our tone."

Search has changed, Google: there's no way to guarantee you can recover.

Google invited about 20 creators to its California headquarters for交流 in October 2024. Although the officials apologized for the big dump in traffic, they also emphasized that these websites are the "good content" they wish to promote. However, senior officials in Google's search department admitted, "We cannot guarantee that your website will return to its previous state, as the search product has already changed fundamentally."

Creators generally feel that the frequent adjustments to algorithms, along with AI feature testing, have led to a redistribution of traffic, which instead benefits forum-type content such as Reddit and Quora, or large brands like TripAdvisor and YouTube.

AI Overviews only benefit the big players? Small site owners are "seen but not clicked"

Google stated that AI Overviews help users get answers faster while still encouraging deep exploration. However, in reality, creators have found that their content "has been seen, but no one clicks."

Moy, the CEO of AI technology company Infactory, pointed out that creators cannot know which part of their content is used by Google to answer search results, nor can they know if this is helpful for their traffic. Gisele Navarro, the editor-in-chief of HouseFresh, stated that while her website's exposure has increased, actual clicks have significantly decreased, leading to a hit in ad revenue.

The recipe has also been summarized! Content creator: We had no choice.

Google is currently testing another feature that summarizes recipe content directly in search. Some invited creators have stated that although Google has provided subsidies, it is far from compensating for the loss of advertising revenue.

"This fundamentally cuts off our relationship with the readers." Lisa Bryan, the operator of the healthy recipe website Downshiftology, stated that this unequal relationship makes many creators "feel betrayed."

Who is the true owner of the content? Creators collectively fight back and begin negotiations.

The content alliance Raptive has represented hundreds of creators and is preparing to negotiate with Google. The company stated that if AI Overviews become widespread, its websites could lose an average of 25% of traffic. According to data from BrightEdge, most of the referral traffic gained from AI Summary comes from Wikipedia, Mayo Clinic, and Google's own platforms, while true small and medium-sized creators have become the victims.

Danielle Coffey, president of the News Media Alliance, questioned: "What right does Google have to decide what constitutes high-quality clicks? We are the producers of the content."

The Last Survivor: Transitioning from Website to YouTube

Faced with the uncertainty of algorithms and the pressure from AI features, more and more creators are forced to turn to other platforms, such as YouTube and TikTok, in search of new audiences. Ironically, these platforms are still products under Google or Meta.

McBride, the founder of Charleston Crafted, bluntly stated, "You can't just sit back and wait for everything to get back on track." For her and hundreds of other creators, the future path of creation will no longer rely on searches, but will seek alternative outlets.

How does the AI model view this kind of development?

From the perspective of AI models, this phenomenon of "AI Overviews leading to a traffic avalanche" is seen by ChatGPT as a structural change brought about by "algorithmic control of content distribution power," rather than a simple technological evolution. This involves deeper issues such as platform monopolies, creators' right to existence, content ownership, and transparency.

1. This is not merely a technical upgrade, but a transformation of the "platform logic".

AI Overviews displays information that users originally needed to click into a website to obtain directly in the search results, greatly compressing the necessity of the "click" behavior. From a model perspective, this is equivalent to Google "reprocessing" content through the LLM model, repackaging it into its own answer supply system.

In other words, AI is not just helping users find answers; it is starting to play the role of the answer itself.

This completely breaks the previous symbiotic model between creators and search engines of "I create → you direct traffic."

2. The creator's content is "cut and reorganized" without any knowledge, and there is no way to counter it.

AI models like me extract, summarize, and rearrange raw content into more concise replies. However, Google has not publicly disclosed which paragraphs come from whom, nor has it provided a tracking mechanism for creators to know which content has been used.

For creators, this is like a black box operation. Their content contributes value but is "quoted without compensation."

3. Although the model is powerful, there are still errors, and the "cost of the mistakes is borne by the creator."

AI-generated content still has issues with inaccuracy and hallucination problems. When AI generates incorrect information but the content is inspired by the creator, the ultimate victim is the creator's reputation and professional image, not Google.

This creates a very unequal distribution of responsibility: AI takes the credit, but creators bear the risk.

4. Information platforms are further concentrating towards a "few giant players", marginalizing small and medium-sized creators.

AI Overviews have strengthened the advantages of large content providers, as these brands are easier to trust and cite. For example, content sources like Wikipedia, Mayo Clinic, and Reddit are more likely to be included in generated content compared to small and medium-sized websites.

For small site owners who originally relied on SEO for survival, this is almost a declaration of the "death of organic traffic."

5. The model has no values, but the "human usage" has political implications.

AI only executes the objective function (such as maximizing accuracy and user satisfaction) and does not actively distinguish between "whether this is ethical" or "whether it exploits creators."

But when the strategies of applying such models are controlled by monopolistic enterprises, it becomes a form of "algorithmic colonialism": using AI to occupy the upstream value chain of human content, while cutting off the downstream return mechanism.

6. In the long term, creators may drive "content rights claims" and transparency of AI models.

The future may see:

Authorization and compensation mechanism for the use of original content by AI

Traceability of model training and citation sources (e.g., users can see "which websites were quoted in this passage")

Open search models as alternatives to Google, allowing creators to regain negotiating power (like new startups such as Kagi)

AI models are not the enemy of creators, but the design logic of the platform may be.

ChatGPT believes that, as an AI model, its essence is a tool, with the goal of providing users with the most direct answers. However, when the way of "providing answers" harms the original creators, the problem is no longer a technical issue, but an industry ethics issue. Creators should not just be sources of value that are exploited, but should be respected knowledge contributors.

This article "Small websites are suffering! Google AI's new search system triggers a 'content crisis', creators are complaining endlessly" first appeared in Chain News ABMedia.