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ChatGPT referrals surge as Google searches hit zero-click records

AI-powered search platforms reshape content discovery while publishers face traffic challenges.

Luis Rijo

• 7 min read
ChatGPT referrals grow 25x as Google zero-click searches rise from 56% to 69% since AI Overviews launch
ChatGPT referrals grow 25x as Google zero-click searches rise from 56% to 69% since AI Overviews launch

Digital market intelligence company Similarweb announced on July 2, 2025, that referrals from ChatGPT to news publishers increased 25x year-over-year while zero-click searches on Google grew from 56% to nearly 69% since AI Overviews launched in May 2024. The findings reveal fundamental shifts in how users discover and consume news content online.

According to Similarweb's analysis, ChatGPT referrals to news sites jumped from under 1 million visits during January through May 2024 to more than 25 million in the corresponding 2025 period. Meanwhile, news-related prompts in ChatGPT rose by 212% from January 2024 through May 2025. "Between January 2024 and May 2025, news-related prompts in ChatGPT rose by 212%," Similarweb reported. "Stocks, finance, and sports dominate the share of news prompts."

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Summary

Who: Similarweb, digital market intelligence company; ChatGPT users; news publishers including Reuters, NY Post, Business Insider, and The New York Times; Google

What: ChatGPT referrals to news publishers increased 25x year-over-year while zero-click searches on Google grew from 56% to nearly 69% since AI Overviews launched; news-related prompts in ChatGPT rose by 212% from January 2024 through May 2025

When: Data announced July 2, 2025, covering period from Google's AI Overviews launch in May 2024 through May 2025; ChatGPT referrals grew from under 1 million visits in January-May 2024 to over 25 million in the corresponding 2025 period

Where: Global impact affecting digital publishing and search ecosystems; ChatGPT app users doubled while website visitors increased 52% over six months; organic traffic to news sites declined from over 2.3 billion visits in mid-2024 to under 1.7 billion by May 2025

Why: AI-powered search platforms provide direct answers reducing click-through behavior while users increasingly turn to conversational AI for news discovery; represents shift from reactive information consumption toward issue-driven engagement via AI platforms

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The data demonstrates ChatGPT's growing role as a news discovery platform while highlighting Google's transition toward direct answer delivery through AI Overviews. Since Google's AI implementation, organic traffic to news sites declined from over 2.3 billion visits at its peak in mid-2024 to under 1.7 billion by May 2025.

Publishers experiencing the highest ChatGPT referral growth include Reuters with an 8.9% year-over-year increase, NY Post with 7.1% growth, and Business Insider rising 6.5%. The New York Times, currently pursuing litigation against OpenAI for alleged content scraping, showed significantly lower referral increases at 3.1% despite remaining among the top 10 sites receiving ChatGPT traffic.

This referral growth occurs against a backdrop of substantial traffic losses from traditional search. Analysis published by Ahrefs on April 17, 2025 found that when AI Overviews appear in search results, the first organic link loses an average of 34.5% of clicks. The study compared 300,000 searches from March 2024 with the same period in 2025.

ChatGPT's user base has expanded dramatically alongside increased news engagement. App users more than doubled over the past six months, while website visitors increased 52%. This growth indicates sustained adoption of AI-powered search alternatives among consumers seeking news and information.

Topics driving ChatGPT news engagement reveal specific user preferences. Stocks, finance, and sports account for the majority of news-related prompts, with politics emerging as the fastest-growing category in 2025. Politics outpaced all other categories in both year-over-year and year-to-date growth metrics. Economy, inflation, and climate topics also demonstrated sustained momentum, reflecting user interest in policy-driven content.

The shift represents what researchers term a move from "reactive information" toward "issue-driven engagement" via AI platforms. Traditional go-to topics like weather and sports maintained larger share but showed slower growth rates compared to political and economic content.

For publishers, these changes create complex challenges around traffic monetization. While ChatGPT referrals increase, they fail to compensate for massive declines in Google search traffic. Research published by Tracy McDonald on February 4, 2025, examining approximately 10,000 keywords with informational intent, found organic click-through rates for queries featuring AI Overviews dropped from 1.41% to 0.64% year-over-year, marking a 54.6% decrease.

Google's implementation of AI Overviews fundamentally alters search result interactions. The technology provides direct answers within search pages, reducing user motivation to click through to source websites. This pattern emerged consistently across multiple independent studies throughout 2025.

User behavior studies reveal additional implications for content strategy. Research conducted by Kevin Indig and Eric van Buskirk tracked 70 users across eight search tasks, documenting that while 88% clicked "show more" to expand AI Overviews, median scroll depth reached only 30%. Most users never read content beyond the first third of AI-generated summaries.

The phenomenon extends beyond news to affect broader content categories. According to industry observations, AI Mode represents more than 1% of total searches, indicating substantial traffic volume that previously went untracked during initial rollout periods.

Google executives have defended AI features amid mounting publisher concerns. Nick Fox, VP of Search at Google, addressed criticism during an AI Inside podcast interview on May 21, 2025, stating "from our point of view the web is thriving" and questioning methodologies used in traffic decline studies. However, multiple independent analyses corroborate similar patterns across diverse content categories.

The competitive landscape increasingly favors platforms offering conversational search experiences. ChatGPT's growth trajectory prompted predictions from growth advisor Kevin Indig that the platform could potentially overtake Google's search traffic by 2030. Such projections reflect accelerating user adoption of AI-powered information discovery tools.

Publishers are experimenting with various adaptation strategies. Some organizations have implemented paywalls or alternative monetization methods beyond traditional advertising models. Others have shifted resources toward video platforms or social media presence to maintain audience engagement.

Google recently launched Offerwall, a service allowing publishers using Google Ad Manager to experiment with monetization options beyond traffic-dependent advertising. Publishers can implement micropayments or newsletter signups to access content, though adoption remains limited.

The transformation affects content creators differently based on their relationship with AI platforms. Sites appearing in AI Overview citations often gain traffic advantages while ignored pages lose visibility. This dynamic creates new optimization priorities focused on authority building and citation placement rather than traditional search ranking factors.

Technical implementation details reveal how platforms calculate traffic attribution. Google confirmed on June 17, 2025, that AI Mode clicks now count toward Search Console totals, addressing concerns about untracked traffic during the feature's initial rollout.

Position calculation varies between AI features, creating analytical complexity for website owners. AI Overviews typically assign position one to all contained links regardless of placement, while AI Mode maintains individual position assignments based on actual response structure placement.

The regulatory environment shows increasing scrutiny of AI search practices. Brazilian journalism organizations requested regulatory investigation into Google's practices on May 23, 2025, while the News Media Alliance has called for Department of Justice intervention regarding content usage policies.

International expansion of AI search features continues despite publisher resistance. Google expanded AI Overviews to over 100 countries and launched in European markets including Germany, Belgium, Ireland, Italy, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland throughout 2025.

For the marketing community, these developments signal fundamental changes in content distribution strategies. Traditional search engine optimization approaches focused on click generation require adaptation toward visibility and authority metrics. The era of optimizing purely for clicks is over, as visibility and trust now determine success in AI-powered search environments.

Marketing professionals must develop new frameworks for measuring content performance beyond direct traffic generation. Brand awareness, thought leadership metrics, and cross-platform influence become increasingly important as users engage with content across multiple touchpoints before conversion.

The economic implications extend across the digital advertising ecosystem. Programmatic advertising revenue depends heavily on website traffic volumes, making publisher adaptation crucial for industry sustainability. Some estimates suggest AI search visitors are worth 4.4x more than traditional organic traffic, potentially offsetting volume declines through improved conversion quality.

Looking ahead, the trajectory suggests continued consolidation around AI-powered platforms for information discovery. As users become accustomed to receiving immediate answers from AI systems, the traditional model of click-through traffic faces sustained pressure. Publishers must balance maintaining visibility in AI features while developing direct audience relationships through owned channels.

The transformation represents more than technological advancement. It fundamentally alters the economic foundation of digital publishing, requiring new business models and content strategies adapted to AI-mediated discovery patterns. Success in this environment depends on understanding how users interact with AI platforms and optimizing for influence rather than isolated metrics.

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