Credit: Kerry Rawlinson via Unsplash
A purpose-built AI search engine, not just a question and answer machine intelligence, is arguably the biggest disruption to the internet, and digital advertising, since the rise of Google.
The announcement that ChatGPT creator OpenAI of an AI-powered search browser, ChatGPT Atlas, sent Google’s parent company’s share price down more than $100 billion in 15 minutes.
But will it kill Google search, change the way consumers use the internet and force the end of the click economy, pushing advertisers to new frontiers?
Alex Jenkins, director of the WA Data Science and Innovation Hub at Curtin University, said Atlas could revolutionise how we use the internet.
“We may soon be able to tell our computers to do our weekly shopping or to book us the cheapest holiday possible and plan an itinerary – and it would be done in seconds,” he said.
“This would not only offer convenience but would also be a major boon for people who currently have difficulty accessing the internet due to disability or other reasons. However, there are of course risks in trusting AI with our personal information.”
Caitlyn Grant, performance lead at This is Flow, says Atlas or AI Overviews isn’t the death of search but it’s the evolution of how we currently know it.
“The introduction of Atlas specifically into the market sees a shift from discovery through clicks to decisions through delegation,” Grant said.
“AI is impacting the customer journey by collapsing it from searching to summarisation to action and that will reshape how advertising currently operates.
“Relying on only paid visibility could set back advertisers, value also needs to sit in being selected and trusted within AI-driven responses.
“On a day to day level we’ll need to look beyond metrics such as impressions and keywords and towards brand integrity, structured content, and presence within agentic ecosystems.
“As reliance on AI Overviews and usage of Atlas increases it'll become less about driving traffic and more about being activated and noticed by these systems.
“The winners will be those that have this at the forefront and look to gain relevancy in this space to remain visible as the next question will be: when will the click economy fade?”
Sam Brough, brand lead at Tracksuit, said browsing has been a largely solo experience since the dawn of the internet.
“Users search, review, and decide independently,” Brough said.
“With ChatGPT Atlas, that changes. Users now have a companion alongside them as they explore the web - one that can even complete everyday online tasks on their behalf in Agent Mode.
“This shift from solo to shared browsing marks a pivotal moment for marketers and advertisers. Decades of marketing science have shown that brands live in memory, and now, the memory playing field is expanding.
“The brands that win will be those able to extend their awareness, trust, and preference from the mind of the consumer into the ‘shared mind’ between the consumer and their AI companion.
“This means brands that are well-known, trusted, factually trustworthy and familiar to the online user will be favoured over others.
“For example, when you ask ChatGPT Atlas in Agent Mode to ‘buy ingredients for a steak dinner,’ it may know you prefer Woolworths and automatically present a Woolworths shopping cart ready for you to review, edit, or purchase.
“Marketers and advertisers seeking to influence these AI-led purchase decisions should focus on building strong, lasting memories in the minds of consumers. Winning there will be the key to winning in the AI world, especially when humans never have to click.”
Shai Luft, co-founder and COO, Bench Media, said this is the most significant disruption to web behaviour since the rise of Google itself.
“The internet’s business model has been built on a simple transaction: people search, they click, and money moves. “Publishers get traffic, advertisers get data, and platforms get rich connecting the two,” he said in analysis prepared for AdNews.
“Every algorithm, every optimisation, every KPI in marketing has revolved around that one behaviour, the click.
“Now, that model is breaking.
“OpenAI’s new browser, Atlas, and Google’s AI Overviews are dismantling the very mechanics that make the web commercially viable.
“One replaces the browser itself with an intelligent assistant that reads and acts on your behalf. The other rewires Google’s search results to deliver AI-generated summaries instead of links.
“Both point to the same conclusion: the user doesn’t need to click anymore - and when clicks die, so does the economy that depends on them.
“Atlas isn’t just another piece of software. It’s an agent. Ask it a question, and it won’t show you ten results; it will give you an answer. It reads, compares, summarises, even purchases - all without opening a new tab. The user stays inside Atlas, while publishers and advertisers are quietly written out of the experience.”
Nick Sadler, digital partner at Avenue C, said this is the first genuine threat to Google's dominance in the search landscape.
“The concept of paying for search results and information (through Atlas) is a new one, and it will be fascinating to see how the general public reacts to this,” said Sadler.
“Questions of accuracy and trust will be hot topics for Atlas - would you truly rely on an AI tool to research and purchase on your behalf?
“Google's response will be fascinating, with the launch of AI Overviews (which have recently been opened up to advertisers) they have attempted to combat OpenAI head on, but the launch of Atlas will no doubt elicit another response from Google.
“Brands will need to continue to keep SEO top of mind, ensuring their websites are discoverable and optimised to feature prominently in all AI results.”
Per Tinberg, managing director at Meerkat Media, said the Atlas browser signals the biggest shakeup to search advertising and is a direct challenge to Chrome’s 72% global market share.
“Built to capitalise on ChatGPT’s 800 million weekly active users, Atlas positions OpenAI to enter the advertising market, even as Google narrowly avoids an FCC-enforced Chrome divestiture,” Tinberg said.
“Despite the glossy marketing launch, major privacy concerns remain. It shifts the burden of maintaining safety onto consumers who are being asked to trust an AI with their most sensitive digital decisions.
“The risks move beyond typical browser security, with the vulnerability of prompt injection attacks and manipulation of the AI’s behaviour by malicious websites.
“While a future of AI-powered browsers may be inevitable, caution should be taken when relying on an agent to autonomously navigate websites and take action in your logged-in accounts.”
János Moldvay, VP measurement at marketing intelligence platform Funnel, said the real test will be whether ChatGPT can capture a meaningful share of product discovery searches and convert that research intent into actual purchases within its ecosystem.
TikTok’s social shopping offers a benchmark, with around 44% of its US users making purchases on the platform in 2024.
“However, ChatGPT’s users typically arrive with a specific query in mind rather than TikTok’s inspiration-driven browsing, which could potentially drive even higher conversion rates when integrated with commerce features,” Moldvay said.
“The data goldmine here is extraordinary. ChatGPT and Atlas's treasure trove of memory, of past queries and search behaviour, creates unprecedented opportunities for hyper-targeted product recommendations.
“Unlike traditional e-commerce platforms, Atlas will have insights not only into users’ research process, but their purchase history too.
“Both OpenAI’s browser ambitions and their commerce strategy ultimately aim for the same prize: comprehensive user behaviour data. But we shouldn’t underestimate the competitive response.
“Everything OpenAI and, recently Perplexity with its Comet browser, are building could theoretically be replicated by existing browser providers, such as Google, which already serve millions of users and can implement features incrementally.”
A key issue will also centre on privacy concerns.
“Users will need to decide whether they’re comfortable allowing yet another company deep access to their browsing activities and purchase history.
“For marketers, this represents another potential ‘walled garden’ in an already fragmented landscape, making integrated measurement strategies and platform-agnostic approaches more critical than ever.”
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