The Wikimedia Foundation has reported an 8% year-over-year decline in human pageviews on Wikipedia, attributing the shift primarily to the increasing influence of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in search engines and the growing use of social video platforms for information seeking. The data was disclosed in a recent blog post by Marshall Miller of the Wikimedia Foundation.
The foundation's analysis, conducted after an update to its bot detection systems, indicated that a significant portion of unusually high traffic observed in previous months was generated by bots designed to evade detection. This system update provided clearer insights into human user engagement.
Miller's post points to generative AI's role in search engines, which are increasingly providing direct answers to users, thereby reducing direct click-throughs to source sites like Wikipedia. Additionally, younger demographics are reportedly gravitating towards social video platforms as their primary source for information, moving away from traditional open web resources. Google has previously disputed claims that AI summaries negatively impact search traffic to external sites.
Despite these trends, the Wikimedia Foundation maintains that Wikipedia's role remains crucial. Miller stated that knowledge derived from the encyclopedia continues to reach audiences, even if direct website visits decrease. The foundation had previously piloted its own AI-generated summaries but paused the initiative following objections from Wikipedia editors.
The shift in information consumption presents potential challenges for Wikipedia's ecosystem. Miller warned that reduced direct visits could lead to a decline in volunteer engagement and financial contributions, both vital for the platform's content development and maintenance. He suggested that AI, search, and social media companies utilizing Wikipedia's content should actively encourage direct visits to the website to help sustain its volunteer and donor base.
In response to these developments, Wikipedia is implementing several measures. These include the development of a new framework for attributing content sourced from the encyclopedia. The organization has also established two dedicated teams focused on expanding Wikipedia's reach to new readers and is actively seeking volunteers to support these efforts. Miller further encouraged broader public support for content integrity, advocating for users to seek citations and understand the human origin of content used by generative AI.
