Wikipedians Believed AI Would Come and Go. They Were Wrong
In a world of AI Overviews, Wikipedia usage declines. But the real loss may be far more existential than website traffic.
In the summer of 2024, a Princeton University study revealed that nearly 5 percent of newly created articles on English Wikipedia contained AI-generated content, marking a significant shift from earlier beliefs. Initially, Wikipedians attempted to control AI-generated articles, removing generic fluff and fake sources, but by March 2026, the platform banned AI content altogether, restricting it to translation and minor proofreading.
This drastic change led to a defensive posture, as editors worried about the downward spiral that could result from relying on AI to write articles. The "Death of Wikipedia" essay predicted that as contributors reduced their efforts due to AI's growing presence, there might be a temptation to replace human-written content with even more AI-generated content, trapping editors in an endless curatorial project.
The article warned that a Wikipedia written and read by machines could become a deracinated entity, devoid of human passion and context. With the introduction of AI Overviews in search, these concerns became increasingly relevant, as Wikipedia's central role in providing reliable encyclopedic knowledge was no longer guaranteed.
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