A recent study reveals a dramatic shift in the digital landscape: around one-third of all new websites created since 2022 are generated or assisted by artificial intelligence. Researchers from institutions including Stanford University, Imperial College London, and the Internet Archive analyzed web data and found that by mid-2025, roughly 35% of newly published sites contained AI-generated content, compared to virtually none before the rise of tools like ChatGPT.
The speed of this transformation has surprised even experts. In just a few years, AI has moved from a supporting tool to a dominant force shaping online content creation. Researchers describe this as one of the fastest shifts in the history of the internet, with machines now playing a major role in producing websites that were traditionally built and written by humans.
The study also examined how this surge of AI-generated content is changing the nature of the web. It found that AI-written material tends to make online content more positive in tone but less diverse in expression, leading to a more uniform and “sanitized” style of communication. This raises concerns about the loss of unique voices and originality across digital platforms.
Interestingly, not all fears about AI content were confirmed. The researchers found no clear evidence that AI is significantly increasing misinformation or reducing citations to sources. Still, the findings highlight a critical challenge: as AI continues to expand its presence online, maintaining quality, diversity, and authenticity will become increasingly important for the future of the internet.
