The large drop in search traffic to many news sites in 2025 indicates that AI summaries within Google and other search engines provide enough information about articles that people don't feel the need to click to learn more.
It may also reflect the trend of people using AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini to get their news. I don't think this is mainstream behavior yet. Very few people I know go directly to chatbots to find out what's going on in the world. However, I have a feeling that by 2026 it may become the norm.
I don't think so no one go directly to BBC or guardian But I think it's going to become normal for people to go to something like ChatGPT and say, “Give me an overview of what's going on in the world, and make sure I stick to the sources that I like.” BBC, CNN, economist Custom tools to do this already exist, and major AI players are building their own ways to create custom morning briefings.
This will be a huge change for media companies. Because it means these AI tools will increasingly become the gateway to the news industry.
They will own the demand because people will go to them first. I'm a firm believer that really high quality brands that have a deep connection with their audience will be able to maintain a direct relationship, but I think we'll see a shift towards AI services next year, similar to how Facebook became the gateway to news about 10 years ago.
