Wikipedia has reported an 8% decrease in user visits on an annual basis. Marshall Miller discussed this in a blog post for the Wikimedia Foundation, noting that the decline became apparent after the introduction of a new bot detection system. He stated that a significant portion of the unusually high traffic in May and June was generated by bots designed to bypass security measures.
Miller highlighted that the primary factors contributing to this decline are the rise of generative artificial intelligence and changes in information-seeking behavior. Specifically, search engines are increasingly providing answers directly in the form of AI-generated summaries, without redirecting users to websites. Additionally, younger internet users are now seeking information in the form of short videos on social media platforms.
A representative of the Wikimedia Foundation emphasized that even under these conditions, the role of the encyclopedia does not diminish, as its materials are still utilized as knowledge sources, even if people do not visit the site directly. However, there are risks: a decrease in visitors may lead to a reduction in the number of volunteers editing articles and a decline in financial support from donors.
Wikipedia has already tested its own AI-generated summaries but paused the project following criticism from editors. Currently, the organization is developing a new content attribution system and forming teams to attract new readers. Miller stressed that companies using Wikipedia's materials should facilitate user transitions to the site itself.
He also called for supporting the creation and integrity of informational content by referring back to original sources and reminded that the data used by AI systems is based on the work of real people, which deserves support.
Recently, Penske Media Corporation, which owns well-known publications like Rolling Stone, Variety, and Billboard, filed a lawsuit against Google, accusing it of using the "AI Overview" feature that appears in search results. According to Penske Media, this feature reduces traffic to its sites and negatively impacts its profits. Google, in turn, later denied that AI-generated summaries decrease search traffic.
