Google’s latest AI initiative has the potential to reduce publisher search traffic by up to 40%. With AI-generated search summaries offering immediate information to users, publishers face dwindling clicks—and revenues—while the news industry navigates a rapidly changing digital environment.

Apple’s iOS 26 comes with an AI-driven news summary feature, but it may not be entirely beneficial. Concerns over misinformation and user control have prompted warnings on how best to manage this brand-new tool.

Penske Media, owner of Rolling Stone, Billboard, and Variety, is suing Google over its AI-generated summaries, which it claims use publisher content without permission. The lawsuit, filed in Washington, D.C., alleges these summaries reduce web traffic to Penske Media’s websites.