During Reddit's latest earnings call, CEO Steve Huffman criticized Google's AI Overviews feature, which automatically summarizes search results. Huffman voiced concerns that AI Overviews has yet to deliver the positive impact that the traditional "10 blue links" approach provided to the broader ecosystem.
In a letter to investors, Huffman positioned Reddit as "the antidote to an automated web," arguing that people crave real human perspective rather than AI-generated summaries. He stated: "People don't want a summary of Reddit; they want Reddit." The company has a lucrative $60 million licensing deal with Google, though a Wall Street Journal report indicates Reddit is considering ending it, along with other publishers like The Economist, Reuters, Politico, and USA Today.
A Pew Research study from last year found that Google's AI Overviews cut referrals to sites by nearly half compared to traditional search results. Google disputed the study's methodology, telling Ars it uses "flawed methodology and skewed queryset that is not representative of Search traffic," and stated it directs "billions of clicks to websites daily."