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Reddit CEO: Google’s AI Mode cost Reddit over 1 million weekly Google referrals in October

Reddit CEO Steve Huffman said Google’s AI Mode and AI Overviews caused Google to stop sending traffic to Reddit, costing the site more than one million Google search referrals per week in October; Reddit shares fell over 25% despite strong earnings. Reddit is testing login walls outside the U.S. to limit scraping and reduce reliance on open web referrals while continuing data-licensing talks with AI providers.

KEY POINTS

  1. Reddit CEO Steve Huffman said Google’s AI Mode and AI Overviews caused Google to stop sending traffic to Reddit, costing the site more than one million Google search referrals per week in October; Reddit shares fell over 25% despite strong earnings.
  2. Reddit is testing login walls outside the U.S.
  3. to limit scraping and reduce reliance on open web referrals while continuing data-licensing talks with AI providers.

WHY IT MATTERS

If Google’s AI-driven search features replace link referrals, any site dependent on Google traffic faces a fundamental structural risk to reach and revenue.

SOURCES & TIMELINE

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Google's AI Mode doesn't drive traffic "for anybody," Reddit CEO Huffman warns the entire web

AI Mode has tanked not just Google's stock but Reddit's too. Shares dropped over 25 percent despite strong earnings, after CEO Steve Huffman revealed that Reddit lost more than one million Google search referrals per week in October. He blames AI Overviews and AI Mode: "AI Mode does not drive traffic. Not for us, and not to anybody as far as I know. That's just a fundamental shift in how Google works," Huffman said. …

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