Reddit wants to be a search engine driven by AI. It has all the meaning of the world

Reddit has released its last figures, closing The most profitable quarter in its history with income that has grown by 78% year -on -year up to 500 million dollars. But beyond the figures, the platform has also shown interest in turning its business with an idea that could well function as an alternative to a google focused on the search for personal experiences. And Steve Huffman, CEO of the company, wants to convert Reddit in a search engine reference.

The commitment to the human in the era of AI. While the rest of the Internet is filled with artificially generated content, Reddit has done exactly the opposite. His CEO, Steve Huffman, summarize it Perfectly: “AI does not invent knowledge, learn from us, from real people sharing real perspectives.” And for many users, Reddit has become a kind of refuge of those who seek human experiences and opinions.

Numbers that show it. Reddit’s native search already has 70 million unique weekly users, while Reddit Answersits search tool with the launched in December, has gone from 1 million to 6 million weekly users in just a few months. Its proposal integrates generative artificial intelligence to navigate among the experiences, advice and tutorials that the portal houses, an alternative that at the moment seems to be convinced to users.

Google: “blah blah bla reddit”. All We have ever done it: Write our consultation on Google followed by the word “Reddit”. And it is that over the years we have seen how Google has become a space loaded with content generated with AI, sponsored articles, and, ultimately, results that do not effectively solve the user’s consultation. With The summaries generated by Google More of the same. Many users value the experiences of other users, and that is why the fact of finding a solution to a technical problem from Reddit is so effective. And there will always be someone who happened to you.

An integrated search engine. Reddit is not formed to be the final destination of Google searches. Huffman wants That users think directly on Reddit as a search engine. The plan is to integrate Reddit Answers with the traditional search for the platform and convert the search into a central feature. “We are going to unify the search experience and we will put it on the front line of the application,” explains the CEO.

Reddit’s transformation. The platform has seen how traffic from Google “varies week by week” and Huffman Recognize which was “an obstacle” during the last quarter. With Google more and more determined to give direct answers with AI instead of links, Reddit needs to ensure its future reducing that dependence. Paradoxically, while signing Millionaire agreements To license your data to Google and Openai, you are building your own competitor.

And now what. Reddit is already 20 years old, but his IPOUBO In 2024 he has given him a second youth. The platform has shown that it can monetize both its traditional advertising business (which is 93% of its income) and its human data treasure. And in the future in which it seems that the artificial on the Internet will predominate, to have a portal where ‘the authentic and the human is a very lucrative business.

Cover image | Reddit

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