Google delivers another blow to digital publishers with AI summaries in news feed

Currently available in the US, the feature might soon be rolled out across the world and all devices, say industry leaders

by e4m Staff
Published: Jul 17, 2025 9:11 AM | 2 min read

Just days after its June 2025 Core Update caused a sharp decline in traffic and visibility for many news websites, Google reportedly has quietly rolled out another disruptive feature—this time targeting its Discover feed, the main news section inside Google’s Search app on iOS and Android.

Instead of seeing headlines and bylines from individual news publishers, users are now greeted by AI-generated summaries accompanied by a small stack of publisher logos. These summaries, prominently displayed under trending topics like sports and entertainment, are created by Google’s AI, which the app itself warns “can make mistakes”.

While the feature is currently available only to users in the US, Google says this is not a limited test but a full rollout across both Android and iOS platforms, TechCrunch reported. The company claims the summaries are meant to help users “decide what pages they want to visit”, but for digital publishers — already reeling from search visibility drops — this shift could further erode click-through rates and content attribution.

In addition, Google is experimenting with other AI-inspired formats in Discover. Some stories are now bundled into topic clusters or appear with bulleted summaries—subtle changes that reduce the visibility of individual publishers while elevating Google’s role as a summariser of news.

For publishers, this move deepens the ongoing concern: that original journalism is being increasingly sidelined in favour of AI-generated overviews that drive engagement within the Google ecosystem—without guaranteeing meaningful traffic or revenue to content creators.