AI summaries are hurting news websites, study warns: 'We’re losing our readers'

Exclusive: Research shows sites that used to rank first on Google can lose up to 79% of their traffic when pushed below AI-generated answers.

Online news outlets are facing a serious challenge as Google's AI-generated summaries take over the top spots in search results—leaving traditional links buried and audiences vanishing. A new study reveals that these AI summaries could lead to a dramatic drop in visitors, with some sites seeing up to 80% fewer clicks.

This shift has sent shockwaves through the media world. For publishers who rely on search traffic to survive, this isn’t just a dip—it’s an existential crisis. The worry? People get all the answers they need from the AI snippet and never feel the need to click through to the original article.

The report from analytics company Authoritas found that even websites that once held the coveted top spot in Google search results could lose nearly four out of five visitors if their link appears beneath an AI-generated summary.

Worse still, the study noted that YouTube—owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet—is getting more visibility than before, raising questions about fairness and competition. These findings are now part of a legal complaint filed with the UK’s competition watchdog.

Google pushed back, saying the study was “inaccurate” and based on outdated or skewed information. A spokesperson argued that AI tools make it easier for people to ask more questions and that they still send billions of clicks to websites daily. They insisted that there hasn’t been any huge drop in overall web traffic.

But another study paints a different picture. A month-long survey by the Pew Research Center looked at nearly 69,000 Google searches. It found that people clicked on a link under the AI summary only once every 100 searches.

Google also criticized this second study, saying it used flawed methods and didn’t accurately represent most search traffic.

Behind the scenes, many news executives are growing frustrated. They say Google won’t share the data they need to measure how AI summaries are affecting their traffic. And while these AI features aren’t yet in every search, publishers in the UK are already feeling the sting.

Back in May, Carly Steven of MailOnline revealed a steep drop in clicks from search results with AI summaries—down 56% on desktop and nearly 50% on mobile.

The legal complaint was brought by tech justice group Foxglove, the Independent Publishers Alliance, and the Movement for an Open Web. Together, they’re calling on regulators to act.

Owen Meredith, CEO of the News Media Association, accused Google of keeping users trapped in its own “walled garden,” making money off of content created by hardworking journalists.

“This can’t go on,” he said. “If we don’t fix this soon, we’re going to lose access to reliable, high-quality information online.”

Rosa Curling, director of Foxglove, didn’t mince words. “What we’re seeing is devastating,” she said. “Google’s AI Overviews are already hurting independent UK journalism. It’s not just that Google is lifting reporters' work—it’s that they’re using it to boost their own tools and profits, while cutting newsrooms out of the picture.”