Google CEO Liz Reid has written a blog post addressing concerns about the impact of its AI-driven search features on web traffic. According to Reid, clicks are not declining and total organic click volume remains relatively stable year-over-year. This contrasts with recent Pew Research Center findings suggesting lower click-through rates for searches with AI Overviews. Google disputes these conclusions, citing the vastness of the internet and common trend shifts.
Reid notes that AI Overviews, similar to Google’s Knowledge Graph or sports scores features, do not reduce clicks. Instead, she claims to see higher-quality clicks, where users engage with links without immediately backing out. However, Reid fails to provide data to support this claim, undermining her argument.
Google has observed a trend towards users seeking “authentic voices and first-hand perspectives,” which may be related to its partnership with Reddit in early 2024. The company has increased surfacing of Reddit links in search results since then.
Source: https://arstechnica.com/google/2025/08