From untouchable to catching up fast
For nearly 25 years, Google has been the go-to place for online search. suddenly that dominance is being challenged. Artificial intelligence (AI) is rewriting the rules of the game and Google now finds itself racing to catch up.
At their big developer conference in May, Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai took the stage with a confident message. “We’re bringing generative AI to more people than any other product in the world,” he said. although, behind the scenes there’s a growing concern.
Search behavior is changing at lightning speed
In the past, people typed a few keywords into Google and clicked through a list of links. today, millions are skipping that step by using AI chatbots like ChatGPT, Perplexity and Claude.
You can now ask questions like “what are the best ways to grow my business” and get a full answer in seconds. Structured, direct, and with no need to browse websites or scroll endlessly. It feels more like having a smart assistant than just using a search engine.
The numbers tell the story, AI tools are surging
According to April data from Similarweb, people’s behavior is shifting fast.
platform year-over-year traffic growth
- ChatGPT 182%
- Perplexity 181%
- Copilot 155%
- Claude 115%
- Gemini 13%
Meanwhile, Google Search traffic dropped by 1% in the same period. that might sound small, but when your rivals are growing by triple digits, it’s a red flag.
Google is fighting back with its own AI tools
Google is not sitting at it’s hands. since 2023, they’ve been integrating AI into search through several new features.
AI Overviews display AI-generated summaries at the top of search results, already showing up in around 13 percent of all searches. AI Mode allows users to carry out complex, multi-step tasks in a single query. Gemini, Google’s flagship AI model, is now integrated into the core of the search experience or better the search engine result pages (SERP).
Google knows it can’t afford to lose traffic to competitors. an internal memo sums up their thinking clearly “if we’re going to lose traffic, better to Gemini than to ChatGPT.”
There might be a big problem, the business model
Google makes billions from search ads based on keywords. you search “buy a bike” and Google shows paid links. you click, and they make money.
But with AI Overviews, users often don’t click at all. they get the answer directly.
A study of 300,000 keywords showed a 34.5% drop in click-through rate when AI Overviews were displayed. and nearly 77% of AI-assisted searches in the US led to zero clicks.
This is a major threat to Google's ad revenue. fewer clicks means less income. and running AI tools is expensive. They require massive computing power, servers, and energy.
Rethinking the entire user experience
Google sees this transformation as necessary. Nick Fox, head of the Search team, said “This is an exciting expansion of what people can do with information. this technology is built for that mission.”
He believes AI will lead to better, more targeted ads, based on real user intent rather than simple keywords. But that promise has yet to be proven.
The AI search war is heating up
OpenAI, Perplexity and others are growing rapidly. Some experts say Google may already be too late.
Jason Fairchild, CEO of tvScientific, believes OpenAI has crossed the tipping point. “they’re reaching over 70 million monthly active users. They will dominate search. it’s almost mathematical certainty.”
He even compared Google to Yahoo in the early 2000s. Yahoo once relied on Google to power its search. Eventually, Google became the dominant player and left Yahoo behind.
Others believe Google still has the edge. it has a huge user base, a powerful infrastructure, and decades of experience with machine learning. Google lost the first round of the AI fight but is still very much in the game.
The future of search and advertising is being rewritten
this is more than just a tech update. It is a digital revolution. We are moving from “searching” to “asking and getting instant answers”. From clicking links to having conversations. From keyword ads to intent-based recommendations. AI is changing not only how users find information but also how businesses reach them.
How we at DotControl stay visible
At DotControl, we don’t see this shift in search behavior as a threat, we see it as an opportunity to stay ahead. Brands need to be aware of the rise of AI-generated answers taking precedence over traditional search results. This means fewer clicks on both organic and paid links. That’s why we advise investing in content that is not only informative, but also tailored for conversational AI. Think structured data, clear answer-based formats, and content that’s easy to understand for both users and language models.
It’s also becoming essential to think beyond traditional SEO. Brands should increase their visibility across AI platforms like Gemini, Perplexity, and ChatGPT by strengthening their online authority. At DotControl, we help clients build future-proof content strategies and become AI-ready, from technical optimization to brand positioning within the new search landscape.
Want to learn more about Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), which ensures your brand is cited in AI-generated answers rather than buried in traditional search listings? Read about GEO and how DotControl’s specialized GEO audits help analyze your visibility and prepare your content for AI-first search here.
In summary
AI-powered platforms like ChatGPT and Perplexity are growing fast and putting the pressure on Google. Google is responding with Gemini, AI Overviews, and AI Mode but struggles to protect its ad-driven business model. Clicks are down, AI costs are high, and users are changing habits quickly.
The search landscape is shifting from a list of links to a conversation-based experience.
Google still has the tools to lead, but it must reinvent itself fast to stay on top.