Google has published an article that says AI is not stealing traffic from websites. In fact, it is driving more queries and higher quality clicks. We believe you!
The Mountain View company has highlighted how AI Mode, AI Overviews have improved the user experience, and that people are searching more than ever, by asking more complex questions.
Liz Reid VP, Head of Google Search, writes at the Google blog, saying that according to the company's data, that search volume to websites has been relatively stable. She also says that the average click quality has increased, i.e. users click on results instead of clicking back.
These claims are in stark contrast with studies published by third-parties, a fact that has been acknowledged by Google. Pew Research Center, which I mentioned in a previous article, said that Google users who read a summary generated by an AI, are less likely to click on links to websites. They mostly just close the tab, or the browser, once they have the information they wanted. This might benefit search engines, but has a serious impact on blogs, which depend on web traffic for earning revenue.
Google has denied that AI Overviews has resulted in a dramatic decline in traffic, and says that third-party reports are based on flawed methodologies, isolated examples, or even based on data before the roll-out of AI features in search.
"Our data shows people are happier with the experience more", "total organic click volume from Google Search to websites has been relatively stable", "average click quality has increased". Those are pretty words. But that's the problem, as TechCrunch notes, we just have to take Google's word for these. You talk about incorrect reports and flawed data, but don't provide your own data to back your statements.
I liked this part of Google's article which reads "While overall traffic to sites is relatively stable, the web is vast, and user trends are shifting traffic to different sites, resulting in decreased traffic to some sites and increased traffic to others." Well, if that's not a hint about AI's impact on search, I'm not sure what it is.
It's not just Google though, most AI services are affecting blogs and other websites negatively. Very few people actually bother to click on the links that are quoted by chatbots. Well, you should, not as a courtesy to the website that helped you, but at least to verify that the information provided by the chatbot was actually taken from the web page. Sometimes, AI hallucinates with incorrect links.
AI isn't sentient, it just regurgitates what it finds on the internet. People find it convenient to use, they don't realize the impact it has on their privacy, and willfully provide data that is used to train large language models. This data is used by companies to make money. Blogs are also being exploited as a resource in this process.
My question is this. Without the sources, without the websites that feed the AI the information that it provides, Can AI exist? Everyone is focused on short-term profits, nobody thinks about the long-term impact.
Google is facing an antitrust lawsuit against publishers in Europe for anticompetitive practices, and is under scrutiny in the U.S. in a lawsuit against the Department of Justice.
Do you use AI for search? Do you follow up by clicking on the links?
Thank you for being a Ghacks reader. The post Google claims that AI in search is not stealing traffic, it drives more queries appeared first on gHacks Technology News.
0 Commentaires