AI Chatbots and Short Videos Steal Spotlight as Wikipedia’s Human Visits Decline by 8%

Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia site, has made public that human traffic to its site decreased by 8% in 2025. The Wikimedia Foundation said that AI resources, search engines, and social media sites are now giving straight answers, cutting the necessity to visit the site.

In an October 17 blog post, the Foundation said that shifting internet tendencies and the growth in bot traffic have altered people's way of gathering information.

Wikimedia explained that its system divides traffic into two categories: human and bot. The system was reviewed after a sudden surge in traffic from Brazil in May 2025. The investigation revealed that many of these visits were actually generated by bots mimicking human behavior.

According to the report, people are now directly using AI chatbots and search engines to find information, which extracts answers from Wikipedia's data. Meanwhile, younger users are increasingly relying on short video platforms. Despite this, Wikipedia remains the most reliable data source for AI and large language models (LLMs).

The Foundation states that fewer visits to the website could impact the volunteer community and donations. These are the people who maintain Wikipedia's neutrality, credibility, and transparency. The organization has appealed to AI companies and social platforms to promote Wikipedia as a major source of information so that users not only learn but also contribute.