Google’s once-vaunted motto, “Don’t be evil,” has long been replaced by “Do the right thing,” but recent developments suggest the company is struggling to live up to either. The tech giant is facing significant backlash as its AI Overviews and AI Mode features are reportedly hurting businesses that rely on Google for advertising and organic search traffic.
Search Engine Land reports that three in four websites have seen their home page traffic shrink over the past year, while Ahrefs found that AI Overviews correlate with a 58% lower average clickthrough rate for top-ranking pages. Reddit CEO Steve Huffman noted that Google search referrals to Reddit have declined “meaningfully” as users stay within AI Mode rather than clicking through to external sites.
Google’s ad revenue growth has slowed to 12%, its weakest rate in five quarters, raising concerns about the company’s future. Alphabet’s stock has dropped about 18% over the past 30 days, including a single-day loss that erased $500 billion in market value. Analysts warn that Google’s reliance on AI is now jeopardizing its core ad business.
Adding to its troubles, Google is facing criticism for forcing AI tools on schools. The company has mandated that K-12 institutions enable its AI features in student software or lose access to Google Search. Critics, including former FTC chair Lina Khan, argue that Google is leveraging its monopoly to coerce schools into adopting AI, raising antitrust concerns.