Reddit CEO Steve Huffman acknowledges a ‘significant’ drop in traffic from Google in the third quarter, which he attributes to AI Overviews and AI Mode. To offset this decline, the platform will test requiring users to create an account to access it in the fourth quarter, outside the United States.
- Reddit’s CEO admits Google search traffic fell sharply, blaming Google’s AI Overviews and AI Mode.
- Reddit will test mandatory login outside the United States in the fourth quarter.
- The stock fell over 15% despite revenue beating expectations, because daily active users missed forecasts.
- Other factors, such as 2026 Google updates, may also explain the drop, and Reddit is still negotiating a data deal with Google.
A drop in Google traffic acknowledged by the CEO
Questioned by CNBC on October 29, 2026, Steve Huffman, co-founder and CEO of Reddit, stated that referral traffic from Google Search was ‘down significantly this quarter’. He links this decline to the ‘shift to AI Mode and AI Overviews’. AI Overviews are the AI-generated answers displayed at the top of Google’s results, while AI Mode is its conversational search interface.
The CEO distinguishes this change from past evolutions. According to him, previous Google algorithm changes ‘came and went’, whereas the search engine’s AI efforts represent ‘a fundamental change’ in how it operates. He predicts the drop in search-driven visits will continue into the fourth quarter.
The market reacted poorly to these announcements. According to CNBC, Reddit’s stock fell more than 15% immediately after the results were released, even though revenue exceeded expectations. It reached $895 million, against $878 million expected, representing 53% year-over-year growth. However, global daily active users, measured in DAUq (daily active unique visitors), reached 130.3 million, against 133.7 million expected. In the United States, it declined 2% year-over-year, to 50.7 million. Fourth-quarter forecasts, between $1 and $1.03 billion, are also below the $1.05 billion expected by Wall Street.
A mandatory login test outside the United States
According to CNBC, Reddit plans to require all its users to create an account to access the platform. The details remain unclear: Steve Huffman gave no deployment timeline, citing the complexity of implementation. Reddit still needs to determine which parts of the service will remain visible to logged-out visitors.
The logic is primarily economic. Reddit derives most of its revenue from advertising and monetizes logged-in users better. ‘The vast majority of our revenue comes from our app users, and logged-in users are direct traffic,’ explained Steve Huffman. He also presents this decision as a turning point, stating that Reddit is ‘the last platform to offer almost unlimited access without logging in.’
Multiple causes and an ongoing negotiation with Google
The decline described by Reddit may not be solely explained by Google’s AI. SEO consultant Glenn Gabe reminded on X that he had dedicated a three-part series to Reddit’s AI-automatically translated pages, which, according to him, represent tens of millions of URLs. These pages are said to have been heavily penalized by the May 2026 core update and the June 2026 anti-spam update. Data from Semrush published by Barry Schwartz on Search Engine Roundtable does not allow for separating the share of each factor.
Reddit also has another lever: licensing its data. The ‘other revenue’ segment, which includes this activity, grew 35% year-over-year, reaching $48 million in the third quarter. According to CNBC, its two main partners in this area are OpenAI and Google. Steve Huffman indicates that Reddit is still ‘in negotiation’ with Google and will only sign a deal ‘if it makes sense for Reddit.’
