Goldman Warns of 'Google Zero': AI Search Threatens Publishers with 40% Traffic Drops
SumitGup · x · 2026-08-13
According to a Goldman Sachs TMT note reported by WSJ, the long-feared “Google Zero” moment is materializing. Google Search is largely stopping traffic referrals to third-party sites, with some publishers facing projected traffic drops of over 40% between mid-2025 and mid-2026.
Publishers are caught in a dilemma: allow Google’s multi-purpose crawlers to scrape content for both traditional search and AI training, or block them entirely and lose search visibility. Major outlets including USA Today, Reddit, Politico, and Reuters are now considering restricting Google’s access. Meanwhile, Cloudflare plans to block multi-purpose crawlers by default starting mid-September. The old model where publishers had no real alternative to Google’s rules is cracking.
Related event: AI Search Triggers "Google Zero" Crisis as Publisher Traffic Plummets(2 posts)→
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