Although search engines continue to be the main gateway to online information, the accelerated growth of AI chatbots, such as ChatGPT, Claude or Perplexity, among others, points to a structural transformation in the way users navigate, consult and discover content. From WAM they point out that this transition driven by AI chatbots is already beginning to be noticeable in the search habits of millions of users.
According to a study carried out by OneLittleWeb using data from SEMrush, during the period from April 2024 to March 2025, search engines generated 1.86 billion visits. The slight decrease of 0.51% compared to the previous year confirms the maturity of these platforms, while reinforcing their strength. Google, alone, concentrates 1.63 billion annual visits, which is 26 times more daily traffic than ChatGPT, one of the most used AI chatbots globally.
Despite these data, the WAM study also reveals the beginning of a cycle change where information stops being sought and begins to be talked about. Users still turn to traditional search engines 34 times more, but that difference is narrowing as AI chatbots are integrated into new platforms and devices, a phenomenon that WAM identifies as one of the great vectors of change for the coming years.
The use of AI chatbots is consolidated
The most significant trend in the report is the exponential growth of conversational assistants. AI chatbots recorded 55.2 billion visits between April 2024 and March 2025, an increase of 80.92% from the previous year. Although their global weight is still small compared to search engines, the speed of adoption of AI chatbots is decisive.
ChatGPT leads the sector with 47.7 billion visits, after growing 67.09% in one year. Around it, other AI chatbots such as Grok, driven by its integration into X, Microsoft Copilot, Claude and Perplexity are leading some of the most notable growth in the entire digital ecosystem. The expansion of these AI chatbots is supported, above all, by intensive use from mobile phones and on platforms where conversation and navigation coexist naturally, an area that WAM points out must be followed closely to anticipate new digital behaviors.
From “searching” to “asking”: an inevitable change
The rapid evolution of AI chatbots is accelerating the transition to a discovery model based on questions, context, and advanced personalization. Although search engines maintain a dominant position, AI chatbots are beginning to offer more agile responses, more intuitive processes and increasingly integrated user experiences.
“We are experiencing the transition from ‘search’ to ‘ask’. The arrival of AI chatbots integrated into mobile phones, browsers and social networks is going to completely transform how we discover information. Brands that understand that SEO is no longer just for Google, but also for AI chatbots like ChatGPT or Perplexity, will be the ones that maintain their relevance in the coming years,” says Jorge Carriazo, Head of Strategy at WAM.
New implications for digital marketing strategy
This context has profound implications for marketing. Traditional SEO continues to be essential to guarantee visibility, but a new discipline is beginning to emerge: SEO aimed at AI chatbots. This approach requires more dialogic, personalized content oriented to specific questions, a format aligned with the operation of AI chatbots and language models.
The expansion of these AI chatbots must be closely monitored to anticipate new digital behaviors
Added to this is the appearance of AI chatbots integrated into social networks, such as Grok in X, which open a new way to activate contextual marketing strategies, in real time and with a particularly relevant impact on mobile audiences.
According to WAM, although search engines continue to clearly dominate, AI chatbots are no longer a novelty and have become real channels of traffic and discovery. The transition will be gradual, but increasingly evident. For brands, the conclusion is clear: integrating AI chatbots and conversational AI into their digital strategy is no longer an option for the future, but rather a present necessity to maintain relevance in a rapidly evolving information ecosystem.
