AI is changing the internet by changing who uses it. Cloudflare’s CEO says automated traffic overtook human traffic in May 2026, and AI tools increasingly answer questions without sending anyone to the source. For businesses, being recognised as a credible provider across many sources may now matter as much as ranking on Google.
For more than two decades, search engines have been central to how businesses attract customers online. Companies invest in websites, SEO and content marketing to rank well on Google and turn the resulting traffic into enquiries and sales.
But what happens when people stop visiting the websites that hold the information they want?
In a recent interview on the Big Technology Podcast, Matthew Prince, CEO of internet infrastructure company Cloudflare, shared statistics on the growth of artificial intelligence and its effect on how the internet works. His argument is that AI is changing the relationship between the businesses that publish information and the people looking for it. The implications go well beyond the technology industry.
Has automated traffic really overtaken people?
According to Prince, May 2026 was the first month in which automated traffic exceeded human traffic across the internet, based on Cloudflare’s data. He also predicts that, if current trends continue, automated traffic could be 1,000 times greater than human traffic within five years.
Much of the increase comes from AI systems accessing online information, whether to train models or to answer questions and carry out tasks on behalf of users.
Take someone looking for a specialist insurance broker. They might once have searched Google, visited several websites, read about each firm’s services and made an enquiry. Now they can ask an AI assistant to research the market and recommend the most suitable providers. The assistant may examine hundreds of sources, yet the person making the enquiry might see only three recommendations.
For businesses investing in SEO and digital marketing, that is a big shift.
How many visitors do AI platforms send back?
Perhaps the most revealing figures in the interview compared how often AI platforms access websites with the number of visitors they refer. Historically, Google might crawl a website twice for every visitor it sent.
The approximate figures discussed in the podcast look very different. Google now crawls 36 times for every visitor it refers, OpenAI 3,000 times and Anthropic 120,000 times.
These are broad estimates rather than measurements for individual websites, but they show the scale of the change. AI platforms can retrieve and use large quantities of information while generating few visits to the original sources.
That is a commercial problem for publishers whose revenue depends on traffic. It also raises a question for any business that invests in articles, research and other online content. If potential customers get what they need from an AI platform, how should the return on that investment be measured?
Does this mean the end of SEO?
Prince thinks the traditional search engine model is under considerable pressure, but SEO is not about to disappear. People will still use search engines, and well-structured, informative websites that rank for relevant keywords will keep paying off.
What is changing is how information is discovered and presented. Instead of a list of links to choose from, users can increasingly get a single answer from an AI assistant. For a professional services business, the question may become less about whether it ranks first on Google and more about whether AI systems recognise it as a credible provider.
This is where AI search optimisation becomes relevant. Businesses need to think about how their expertise and credentials are represented across the sources AI systems use. That could include their own website, independent media coverage, industry publications and customer reviews.
There is no guarantee that appearing in these sources will secure an AI recommendation. They can still help build the evidence behind a business’s reputation.
Why PR may matter more than before
In specialist sectors such as financial services, insurance, tax and technology, credibility has always been central to marketing. Prospective clients want reassurance that a firm has the expertise and experience they need. PR has traditionally supplied it through independent media coverage, expert commentary, interviews and thought leadership.
As AI becomes more influential in the research process, that wider body of information could count for more. A firm that has regularly contributed expert comment to relevant publications may have a richer online presence than one relying on its own website, because an AI system has more independent material to draw on.
Media coverage does not automatically translate into AI visibility. Even so, the link between PR, reputation and discoverability deserves much more attention, and it strengthens the case for treating PR and SEO, and the content behind both, as one effort.
Smaller businesses may be at a disadvantage
Prince also raised a point about smaller and newer companies. Established businesses often have years of material online, including thousands of customer reviews and extensive media coverage. A newer business, even one offering a better service, may have little independent information about it.
If AI systems favour organisations with more credible evidence, established brands could gain an extra competitive advantage. For smaller professional services firms, that makes a consistent online presence particularly relevant. Useful expert content, coverage in respected industry publications, detailed case studies and accurate business information can all help.
The aim is to make it easy for potential customers and AI systems to understand what the business does and where its expertise lies.
What should businesses do now?
AI search is still developing, and abandoning established digital marketing strategies would be premature. Four areas are worth reviewing.
Start by checking how your business appears in AI search. Ask ChatGPT, Claude and other AI services the questions your prospective customers might ask. Which firms are recommended, is yours mentioned, and is the information accurate?
Keep investing in authoritative content. Articles that answer specific customer questions and explain complex subjects clearly should stay valuable, whether they are found through conventional search or AI-generated responses.
Independent media coverage deserves a place in the plan too. Being quoted regularly in relevant publications adds to a business’s reputation and creates more sources of information about its expertise.
Finally, look again at how you measure performance. Website traffic and search rankings remain useful, but visibility within AI-generated answers and recommendations may increasingly matter as well.
How AI is changing the internet for professional services firms
Prince’s interview raises bigger questions about the future of the internet, including how publishers will be paid for the information AI platforms rely on. For businesses, the more immediate issue is how customers will discover and judge products and services.
A shift towards AI-generated answers could reduce the importance of individual website visits while increasing the value of a credible presence across many online sources. For professional services firms, where expertise and trust drive buying decisions, that could bring PR and content marketing closer to the centre of digital strategy. The challenge is building that visibility while still benefiting from the search channels that already work.
At TMCC Marketing, we think businesses should factor these developments into their wider PR and digital marketing planning. Expert content and targeted media relations, backed by effective SEO, are a sensible starting point while AI search continues to evolve.
Frequently asked questions
What is AI search optimisation, and how is it different from traditional SEO?
AI search optimisation means making it easier for AI assistants to understand and recommend your business. Traditional SEO focuses on ranking pages for keywords in search results. AI search optimisation builds on that with clear service descriptions, case studies, independent coverage and consistent business information across the sources AI tools may draw on. There is no guaranteed method, so treat it as an extension of good SEO rather than a replacement.
Which kinds of media coverage are most likely to help?
Coverage in publications your prospective clients and your sector already read is likely to be most useful, particularly pieces that name your specialists and say what they are expert in. Expert comment, interviews and bylined articles all create independent evidence of your expertise. Nobody can promise that a particular piece will influence AI recommendations, so aim for relevance and credibility rather than volume.
Should a firm that already ranks well on Google change its content plan?
Not necessarily. Strong rankings are still valuable, and content that is clear, expert and focused on real customer questions can also be useful to AI tools. What is worth adding is a check on how AI assistants describe your firm, plus a plan for coverage and profiles beyond your own website. Review it regularly, because the tools are changing quickly.
How can we measure results if website visits fall?
Keep tracking traffic and rankings, then add measures that reflect AI visibility. These could include how often your firm is named when you put your customers’ questions to AI assistants, whether the description is accurate, and whether new enquiries mention an AI tool. Repeat the checks monthly with the same questions to see change over time. Treat the results as indicators, as AI answers can vary between sessions.
Does blocking AI crawlers affect how a business appears in AI answers?
It can. If AI systems cannot read your website, they have less of your own information to draw on, although they may still learn about you from other sources. Some businesses block crawlers for commercial or copyright reasons, so it is a judgement call. If you are unsure what your site currently allows, ask your web developer to check, and weigh the choice against your visibility goals.
This article was written by TMCC’s Managing Director, James Simpson.