Wikipedia traffic falls 8% over 2025 due to bots and direct answers from AI

Wikipedia, the well-known free online encyclopedia, has encountered an unexpected 8% decrease in human page views compared to 2024. This decline is attributed to the rising influence of generative AI, search engines, and social media, which now often provide direct answers to queries without directing users to Wikipedia’s site. In a blog post dated October 17, the Wikimedia Foundation, which manages the platform, outlined how changing internet trends and the prevalence of advanced bot traffic are redefining global information consumption. The Foundation employs algorithms to differentiate between human traffic and bot activity, which allows for precise tracking of genuine user engagement. In May 2025, a surge in what appeared to be human traffic, primarily from Brazil, prompted a closer examination of the bot detection mechanisms. Upon investigation, it was revealed that much of this traffic was, in fact, generated by bots imitating human behavior. The report from Wikipedia connects the decline in page views to significant changes in how individuals seek and consume knowledge today. With search engines and AI chatbots increasingly offering direct answers sourced from Wikipedia, younger users are gravitating towards social video platforms rather than traditional web browsing. Despite these shifts, Wikipedia continues to serve as a vital resource for large language models and various AI-driven platforms, ensuring that the content created by volunteers still reaches a global audience, even if users don't visit the site directly. However, the Wikimedia Foundation has expressed concern that this reduction in traffic could hinder volunteer growth and donor support, both essential for upholding Wikipedia's principles of neutrality, verifiability, and transparency. In light of these challenges, the Foundation has called on AI developers, search engines, and social media platforms to acknowledge Wikipedia as a credible source and to encourage user engagement with the encyclopedia. Additionally, the Wikimedia Foundation is initiating several measures to foster community involvement. It urges users to enhance content integrity by properly citing sources and engaging with original material. Volunteers are also invited to test new tools and participate in shaping the future of Wikipedia while preserving its commitment to a human-centered approach and the free knowledge movement.