Skip to content
Advertisement
A16z warns AI summaries are killing search traffic as zero-click searches surge past 58%

A16z warns AI summaries are killing search traffic as zero-click searches surge past 58%

Andreessen Horowitz outlines a new search paradigm where AI-generated answers keep users on Google and starve publishers of clicks

Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) price

Full chart and stats

Loading chart…

Market cap
$4.0T (shares as of 2026-06-30)
P/E (trailing)
16.3 (EPS to 2026-06-30)
Annual revenue
$402.8B USD (FY ended 2025-12-31) 10-K
Annual revenue growth
+15.1% (FY ended 2025-12-31 vs FY ended 2024-12-31) 10-K
Annual net income
132,170,000,000 USD (FY ended 2025-12-31, attributable to the company) 10-K
Annual operating margin
32.0% (FY ended 2025-12-31)
Forward P/E
Unavailable: no dated forecast source

Gloria daily close for session Oct 28, 2026. Market cap and trailing P/E use this close with the SEC share total and trailing diluted earnings, each dated next to its figure. Annual revenue, revenue growth, net income and margin show their own fiscal period and link the 10-K. Current context may postdate this article.

Alphabet Inc. and its peers

Company PriceMarket capP/E (trailing)Forward P/EAnnual revenue (USD)Annual revenue growthAnnual net income (USD)Operating margin
Alphabet Inc. GOOGL · Price dated Oct 28, 2026 · tokenized GOOGLx $325$4.0T16.3Unavailable$402.8BFY ended 2025-12-31 · 10-K+15.1%FY ended 2025-12-31 vs 2024-12-31 · 10-K132,170,000,000FY ended 2025-12-31, attributable to the company · 10-K32.0%FY ended 2025-12-31
Alphabet Inc. (Class C) GOOG · Price dated Oct 28, 2026 $322$3.9T16.2Unavailable$402.8BFY ended 2025-12-31 · 10-K+15.1%FY ended 2025-12-31 vs 2024-12-31 · 10-K132,170,000,000FY ended 2025-12-31, attributable to the company · 10-K32.0%FY ended 2025-12-31
Meta Platforms Inc. META · Price dated Oct 28, 2026 · tokenized METAx $612$1.6T20.9Unavailable$201.0BFY ended 2025-12-31 · 10-K+22.2%FY ended 2025-12-31 vs 2024-12-31 · 10-K60,458,000,000FY ended 2025-12-31, attributable to the company · 10-K41.4%FY ended 2025-12-31
AppLovin Corporation APP · Price dated Oct 28, 2026 · tokenized APPx $260$87.2B20.0Unavailable$5.5BFY ended 2025-12-31 · 10-K+70.0%FY ended 2025-12-31 vs 2024-12-31 · 10-K3,333,751,000FY ended 2025-12-31, attributable to the company · 10-K75.8%FY ended 2025-12-31

Missing figures stay unavailable. Forward P/E requires a dated source. Annual revenue, revenue growth, net income and margin come from each company's own 10-K, in US dollars, and each row shows that fiscal year. Revenue growth compares the fiscal year with the prior year stated in the same 10-K. Net income is the full year amount attributable to the company, or available to common stockholders where the filing states only that, or consolidated net income. Each row names its basis. Trailing P/E reads "Not meaningful" when the dated trailing diluted EPS is a loss or zero. An operating margin appears only when the filing states both the operating income and the revenue for the same year.

Sources: SEC filings, Gloria daily closes and CoinGecko. Oldest record refresh: Oct 28, 2026, 4:51 PM EDT. Refresh is not a price or filing date. Each row shows its price date and its annual fiscal period. Peers use industry code and company size, or editorial selection. Market cap multiplies that row price by the company share total the latest SEC filing states for every share class together. Trailing P/E divides it by trailing diluted earnings from SEC filings. Rolled earnings per share are approximate because share counts can change between periods. Both appear only when the SEC data carries its date, so they are estimates at one price date, not synchronized filing valuations. Not investment advice.

Token vs underlying stock

Current comparison for GOOGL. Historical observations may postdate this article.

GOOGLx token unit vs GOOGL share · USD

$325.97Oct 28 UTC

-10.2% over displayed period

● GOOGLx token┄ GOOGL stock: $324.89

Aug 5, 2026: token $363.03 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $362.43 Aug 6, 2026: token $358.14 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $357.75 Aug 7, 2026: token $355.20 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $354.30 Aug 10, 2026: token $357.76 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $357.52 Aug 11, 2026: token $344.26 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $343.80 Aug 12, 2026: token $344.44 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $343.54 Aug 13, 2026: token $347.06 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $346.36 Aug 14, 2026: token $346.47 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $345.90 Aug 17, 2026: token $344.71 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $344.00 Aug 18, 2026: token $344.71 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $344.20 Aug 19, 2026: token $345.42 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $344.72 Aug 20, 2026: token $341.21 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $340.67 Aug 21, 2026: token $345.60 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $344.82 Aug 24, 2026: token $348.94 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $348.06 Aug 25, 2026: token $347.59 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $346.96 Aug 26, 2026: token $342.69 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $342.00 Aug 27, 2026: token $341.18 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $340.65 Aug 28, 2026: token $347.10 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $346.59 Aug 31, 2026: token $339.89 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $339.35 Sep 1, 2026: token $335.42 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $335.02 Sep 2, 2026: token $337.78 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $337.12 Sep 3, 2026: token $342.96 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $342.48 Sep 4, 2026: token $339.38 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $338.46 Sep 8, 2026: token $338.99 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $338.36 Sep 9, 2026: token $331.31 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $330.65 Sep 10, 2026: token $333.00 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $332.60 Sep 11, 2026: token $339.44 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $338.50 Sep 14, 2026: token $350.02 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $349.39 Sep 15, 2026: token $345.54 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $344.98 Sep 16, 2026: token $343.72 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $342.87 Sep 17, 2026: token $348.19 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $347.33 Sep 18, 2026: token $349.96 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $349.54 Sep 21, 2026: token $355.68 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $354.97 Sep 22, 2026: token $351.84 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $351.16 Sep 23, 2026: token $338.83 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $337.83 Sep 24, 2026: token $343.15 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $342.36 Sep 25, 2026: token $344.56 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $343.92 Sep 28, 2026: token $343.44 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $342.75 Sep 29, 2026: token $341.65 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $340.92 Sep 30, 2026: token $344.99 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $344.08 Oct 1, 2026: token $339.14 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $338.24 Oct 2, 2026: token $344.17 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $343.50 Oct 5, 2026: token $347.05 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $346.47 Oct 6, 2026: token $348.53 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $347.68 Oct 7, 2026: token $351.27 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $350.50 Oct 8, 2026: token $348.51 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $348.29 Oct 9, 2026: token $352.71 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $351.66 Oct 12, 2026: token $353.57 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $352.72 Oct 13, 2026: token $354.45 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $353.78 Oct 14, 2026: token $347.97 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $347.64 Oct 15, 2026: token $350.19 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $349.22 Oct 16, 2026: token $341.50 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $340.59 Oct 19, 2026: token $345.25 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $344.18 Oct 20, 2026: token $340.61 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $340.28 Oct 21, 2026: token $335.85 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $334.76 Oct 22, 2026: token $324.33 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $324.22 Oct 23, 2026: token $321.30 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $320.21 Oct 26, 2026: token $317.69 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $316.80 Oct 27, 2026: token $321.43 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $320.58 Oct 28, 2026: token $325.97 at 20:00 UTC; stock close $324.89
Aug 5$316.80 to $363.03Oct 28

Source: CoinGecko + Gloria · Retrieved Oct 29, 04:15 UTC

Methodology and data

Split-adjusted regular-session stock closes from the existing Gloria shared history, paired only with an observed token price within 45 minutes of 16:00 New York time. Up to 60 matched sessions. No interpolation or missing-date fill. Weekends and known early closes are omitted. Token units are not adjusted for issuer multipliers or dividend treatment. This compares quoted prices, not fair value, executable premiums or arbitrage returns. Solid line: token. Dashed line: stock. Exact quote times and values appear below. Historical observations. Retrieval refers to the token source. Token quote times use UTC. The fixed cohort shows its oldest member fetch.

Alphabet token vs Alphabet stock: exact source values
Date (UTC)Token (USD)Stock close (USD)Token quote (UTC)
2026-08-05363.03362.432026-08-05 20:00
2026-08-06358.14357.752026-08-06 20:00
2026-08-07355.20354.302026-08-07 20:00
2026-08-10357.76357.522026-08-10 20:00
2026-08-11344.26343.802026-08-11 20:00
2026-08-12344.44343.542026-08-12 20:00
2026-08-13347.06346.362026-08-13 20:00
2026-08-14346.47345.902026-08-14 20:00
2026-08-17344.71344.002026-08-17 20:00
2026-08-18344.71344.202026-08-18 20:00
2026-08-19345.42344.722026-08-19 20:00
2026-08-20341.21340.672026-08-20 20:00
2026-08-21345.60344.822026-08-21 20:00
2026-08-24348.94348.062026-08-24 20:00
2026-08-25347.59346.962026-08-25 20:00
2026-08-26342.69342.002026-08-26 20:00
2026-08-27341.18340.652026-08-27 20:00
2026-08-28347.10346.592026-08-28 20:00
2026-08-31339.89339.352026-08-31 20:00
2026-09-01335.42335.022026-09-01 20:00
2026-09-02337.78337.122026-09-02 20:00
2026-09-03342.96342.482026-09-03 20:00
2026-09-04339.38338.462026-09-04 20:00
2026-09-08338.99338.362026-09-08 20:00
2026-09-09331.31330.652026-09-09 20:00
2026-09-10333.00332.602026-09-10 20:00
2026-09-11339.44338.502026-09-11 20:00
2026-09-14350.02349.392026-09-14 20:00
2026-09-15345.54344.982026-09-15 20:00
2026-09-16343.72342.872026-09-16 20:00
2026-09-17348.19347.332026-09-17 20:00
2026-09-18349.96349.542026-09-18 20:00
2026-09-21355.68354.972026-09-21 20:00
2026-09-22351.84351.162026-09-22 20:00
2026-09-23338.83337.832026-09-23 20:00
2026-09-24343.15342.362026-09-24 20:00
2026-09-25344.56343.922026-09-25 20:00
2026-09-28343.44342.752026-09-28 20:00
2026-09-29341.65340.922026-09-29 20:00
2026-09-30344.99344.082026-09-30 20:00
2026-10-01339.14338.242026-10-01 20:00
2026-10-02344.17343.502026-10-02 20:00
2026-10-05347.05346.472026-10-05 20:00
2026-10-06348.53347.682026-10-06 20:00
2026-10-07351.27350.502026-10-07 20:00
2026-10-08348.51348.292026-10-08 20:00
2026-10-09352.71351.662026-10-09 20:00
2026-10-12353.57352.722026-10-12 20:00
2026-10-13354.45353.782026-10-13 20:00
2026-10-14347.97347.642026-10-14 20:00
2026-10-15350.19349.222026-10-15 20:00
2026-10-16341.50340.592026-10-16 20:00
2026-10-19345.25344.182026-10-19 20:00
2026-10-20340.61340.282026-10-20 20:00
2026-10-21335.85334.762026-10-21 20:00
2026-10-22324.33324.222026-10-22 20:00
2026-10-23321.30320.212026-10-23 20:00
2026-10-26317.69316.802026-10-26 20:00
2026-10-27321.43320.582026-10-27 20:00
2026-10-28325.97324.892026-10-28 20:00

Stock history: Gloria · Retrieved Oct 29, 00:31 UTC. Token history: CoinGecko GOOGLx.

Quoted token and share units can have different rights, multipliers and dividend treatment. This is not an executable premium or arbitrage signal.

Google’s search results page used to be a doorway. You typed a question, got a list of blue links, and clicked through to find your answer on someone’s website. Now, increasingly, Google just gives you the answer itself, and you never leave. Andreessen Horowitz has put numbers to what many publishers already feel in their analytics dashboards: AI-generated summaries are fundamentally reshaping how search works, and not in a way that’s kind to anyone who depends on organic traffic.

The venture capital giant’s analysis frames this as a structural shift, not a temporary blip. The era of link-based search is giving way to what a16z calls a language-based model, where AI responses synthesize information and serve it directly to users. The practical result is a dramatic rise in “zero-click” searches, queries where the user gets what they need without ever visiting a source website.

The numbers paint a stark picture

Zero-click searches now account for roughly 58.5% to 69% of all Google queries in the US, according to analyses covering 2024 and 2025. That represents an increase of up to 13 percentage points since Google began rolling out AI Overviews at scale.

Advertisement

The damage to individual publishers is even more pronounced. Organic click-through rates have plunged between 20% and 64% on queries where AI summaries appear. Some reports peg the typical decline at 30% to 35%, though the range is wide depending on the type of content involved.

Sites that rely heavily on informational content, think how-to guides, explainers, definitions, product comparisons, have been hit hardest. Traffic declines of 15% to 60% have been recorded across this category.

A16z’s GEO framework: the new rules of search

Andreessen Horowitz hasn’t just flagged the problem. The firm has proposed a framework for thinking about it. Their Generative Engine Optimization, or GEO, analysis draws a clear line between old search and new search.

Traditional search was built on links. PageRank, Google’s foundational algorithm, treated every hyperlink as a vote of confidence. The new model, according to a16z, is built on language. AI systems don’t care how many backlinks your page has. They care whether your content can be parsed, synthesized, and cited in a generated response. And here’s the kicker: AI responses typically draw from only 2 to 7 sources.

In English: instead of competing for a spot among ten blue links on page one, publishers are now competing for one of a handful of citation slots in an AI-generated summary. The funnel just got dramatically narrower.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.

More in Technology

See all
Previous storyMarvell hires Adobe CFO Dan Durn as Wall Street pivots toward chipmakers