Google has started rolling out AI-generated summaries in its Discover feed in US.
The feature could reduce clicks to the news sites, raising concerns for publishers.
Not all stories will get summaries. Some will appear as bullet points or grouped collections.
Google has started rolling out AI-generated summaries in its Discover feed, which appears on the Google search app for iOS and Android. This change could impact how users consume news and raise fresh concerns for publishers already struggling with falling traffic.
SurveyInstead of a single headline from a major publication, users will now see a row of news publishers’ logos in the top-left corner, along with an AI-generated summary that credits those sources. Google makes it clear that these summaries are created by AI and includes a warning that the technology “can make mistakes.” The tech giant has confirmed to TechCrunch that the feature is currently live in the US and aims to help users decide what pages they want to visit.
Not every story in Discover will get the AI summary treatment for now. In some cases, users will see other new formats, such as bullet points under a headline or collections of similar articles grouped together.
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This update arrives at a time when many major media companies are also experimenting with AI tools. Still, the rise of AI-generated summaries has left many publishers uneasy. With features like Google’s AI Overviews and AI Mode, users often get the answers they need directly from Google, without ever clicking on a publisher’s link.
A report from The Economist, citing data from Similarweb, said that global search traffic dropped 15 percent year-over-year as of June. As AI summaries expand in Discover, even more traffic to news websites could drop. If people get the main points directly from Google, they might stop clicking on the original articles. This could make it harder for news sites to grow or stay in business.
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Ayushi Jain
Tech news writer by day, BGMI player by night. Combining my passion for tech and gaming to bring you the latest in both worlds. View Full Profile
