Websites allow search engines to index their content for free, and in return, search engines send users back to those sites. Traffic fuels advertising, subscriptions, and online commerce. It’s a simple exchange that has powered the open web as we know it.
Artificial intelligence is now putting that bargain under strain.
As AI-powered search tools and browsers become more sophisticated, some experts warn they could fundamentally change, or even undermine, the structure of the internet. The concern is not that the internet will disappear altogether, but that the “open web” could be hollowed out in the process.
Traditionally, search engines such as Google act as signposts, directing users to external websites where information lives. Increasingly, however, AI tools are doing the searching, summarising, and answering on users’ behalf. Rather than clicking through links, users are presented with neatly packaged responses generated by large language models.
“The nature of the internet has completely changed,” Stack Overflow chief executive Prashanth Chandrasekar told The Economist, arguing that AI is already “choking off traffic to most content sites”. If users no longer need to visit websites, the economic foundations of online publishing become fragile.
This shift is accelerating. According to reports, OpenAI is preparing to launch its own AI agent, Operator, which can “look” at web pages like a human – clicking, scrolling, and typing to complete tasks.
Google, meanwhile, is racing to adapt. Its newly announced AI Mode replaces the familiar list of blue links with a chatbot-style response that synthesises information into a short, article-like answer. The implication is clear: fewer clicks, fewer visits, and less visibility for the original sources.
If these tools succeed, they could “fundamentally redefine how the entire internet works”, according to Gizmodo. Publishers, advertisers, and retailers risk being bypassed entirely, with AI systems acting as intermediaries between users and information. As one editor put it, it’s like asking a librarian for a book and being told about it, without ever seeing the shelves.
Critics worry that something more cultural may be lost as well. The open web has long encouraged exploration: rabbit holes, unexpected discoveries, and moments of serendipity. An AI-driven internet promises speed and convenience, but may sacrifice curiosity and depth in the process. Answers will always be on tap, but the joy of stumbling across something new could fade.
Still, not everyone believes the web is in decline. Google argues that the internet is actually expanding, reporting a 45% increase in web content over the past two years, much of it driven by AI-generated material. From this perspective, AI isn’t shrinking the web, but reshaping it.
There’s also the question of scale. Despite the buzz, relatively few people currently rely on AI tools as their primary search method. Data from web analytics firms shows sharp growth in visits to chatbot platforms, but traditional search engines still dominate by a wide margin. As SparkToro CEO Rand Fishkin has noted, new technologies often feel larger than they are when media attention peaks.
History offers some reassurance. The death of the web has been predicted before, first with the rise of social media, then with mobile apps — yet it has survived each shift. AI may pose the most serious challenge yet, but its long-term impact remains uncertain.
What does seem clear is that the internet is entering a new phase. The bargain that built the internet is changing, and what replaces it will shape how we find, trust, and value information in the years ahead.