Google Is Broken in 2025: AI Overviews Have Taken Over

Let’s face it — something’s off with Google in 2025. Once the undisputed king of clean, reliable search, Google is now pushing out search results with “AI Overviews” that sound more like a fever dream than factual info.

Yes, the search engine we once relied on to settle bar bets and find obscure song lyrics now confidently tells you to put glue on your pizza. You read that right. Glue. On. Pizza.

🤖 Wait, What Are AI Overviews?

In 2024, Google launched AI Overviews — a flashy feature designed to summarize answers to your questions using generative AI, similar to ChatGPT. It shows up at the very top of the search page, like it knows better than the websites it’s summarizing. Sometimes it’s useful. But lately, it’s… not.

Instead of directing users to real articles, it spits out one-paragraph answers that sound smart but can be totally wrong — or worse, dangerous.

Like suggesting you eat rocks for nutritional value. That happened.

🔥 The AI Has Entered Its “Chaotic Evil” Phase

In theory, AI Overviews were meant to save you time. No more scrolling through SEO-stuffed blogs or Reddit threads. Just one clean answer.

But here’s the problem: generative AI doesn’t “know” anything. It guesses, predicts, and fills in blanks like a very confident toddler. So when you ask it why humans can’t lick badgers twice (go ahead, try it), it will invent a reason. A completely made-up one. Delivered with the calm assurance of a TED Talk.

It’s like asking your friend who thinks they’re smart but always gets the details slightly wrong — except now, that friend runs the internet.

📉 Real Websites Are Getting Crushed

Content creators are fuming. Sites like Chegg, Healthline, and even small blogs have seen massive drops in traffic. Why? Because users never click through. AI Overviews “steal” the answer and wrap it in a neat package.

Chegg is suing Google, saying it’s using their content to train the AI and serve it up without giving them credit or clicks. In their words, this AI rollout is “harmful and unsustainable.”

They’re not wrong. It’s like Google invited everyone to a party, ate all the food, and left without paying the bill.

🧪 A/B Testing on the Entire Internet?

Here’s what’s even more frustrating — there’s no off switch. You can’t disable AI Overviews. You’re just part of the experiment. Even if you’re searching for serious things — like medical advice — the AI might jump in with a half-baked summary pulled from random forums.

Google claims it’s “making improvements,” but the whack-a-mole game continues. After backlash, they scaled back AI Overviews for sensitive topics like health and finance, but the errors keep leaking through.

If 2024 was the beta test, 2025 is the full-blown public rollout — and it’s getting messy.

🧠 AI Doesn’t Understand Satire (Yet)

Much of the weird info showing up in AI Overviews comes from places like Reddit or The Onion. The AI doesn’t know satire from science. That glue-on-pizza tip? It was a joke. But the AI thought it was legit advice.

And because Google is built on trust, users assume these AI blurbs are accurate. That’s a huge problem. What happens when AI invents a fake historical fact, or misleads someone about a health issue?

This isn’t just a tech hiccup — it’s a trust crisis.

🌐 What Can You Do?

Right now, not much. There’s no “classic Google” mode. No opt-out button. And DuckDuckGo doesn’t have glue recipes. If you’re a user, stay skeptical. Always double-check info. Look for the source links below the AI box (if they’re even there).

If you’re a content creator or site owner, keep pushing for transparency. Google says it’s listening. Let’s hope it really is.

💬 Final Thoughts: The Internet Is Changing, and Not for the Better

Google isn’t broken in the traditional sense — the servers are still humming, and search ads are still making billions. But its role as the world’s most trusted information gateway? That’s showing serious cracks.

In 2025, AI Overviews have taken over. And unless Google finds a way to rein it in, search results may never be the same.

So yeah… don’t believe everything you Google. Especially if it tells you to glue your food.