Reddit Locks the Door on AI. Finally, Someone Fights Back

Reddit announced on October 29, in its third-quarter shareholder letter, that it is moving to a “logged-in-only experience”. CEO Steve Huffman gave five reasons: a better user experience, better ad targeting, more engagement, protecting Reddit’s data from scraping, and new regulations. And one more big one: falling traffic from Google.

The numbers: revenue grew 53% to $895 million, but daily US users fell 2% to 50.7 million, and search referrals dropped by more than 1 million visits a week in October. Huffman said Google is crawling Reddit “as hard as ever”, but “the AI mode does not drive traffic, not for us and not to anybody.” On October 30 the stock fell around 25%, below $100.

Tests start this quarter in select markets outside the US. Logged-out visitors should still see the front page and posts they reach from a search engine or a shared link, but not browse subreddits, not even in a private window. Reddit’s public API stops accepting new requests on October 31, RSS feeds end on November 13, and the rest of the public API ends in March 2027.

In this article: Google, ChatGPT, Claude: give people a link, not my work · AI is hurting even a giant · How Reddit closed its door, step by step · Finally, someone fights back · The weak spot: a bot makes an account in three seconds · It is not a paradox. It is a monopoly · Why this is very serious · The big sites stayed silent · Here is what independent writers can do · One request to everyone who reads · FAQ

Google, ChatGPT, Claude: give people a link, not my work

I will start with a message to Google, ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity and all the others. You must understand that you cannot send your AI agents to take everything. The most you can do is help, and give a link where a person goes and reads the news for themselves.

Look what AI is doing even to a giant like Reddit. Just yesterday I wrote that people don’t want to read anymore, it’s enough to ask AI. And one more thing: if Reddit is falling, what happens to independent journalists?

AI is hurting even a giant

Reddit has more than a million fewer visits a week from Google. Now imagine your favorite publisher, with his news site or blog, and how he is suffering right now.

And the stock falling around 25% in one day is only a demonstration of what AI will do to Reddit. Revenue grew 53%, and it still didn’t help. I’m afraid Reddit will show an even bigger drop in Q4. Reddit itself warned that daily users could fall by a low double-digit percentage if search traffic keeps going down.

And don’t forget: Reddit is where people are the most passionate, where they say their opinions. That is exactly what AI is now chewing up and serving as a summary.

How Reddit closed its door, step by step

Closing a portal is not that simple. Reddit started closing in 2023, when it put a price on its API. Thousands of subreddits went dark in protest. How is that possible?

Then came the deal in 2024. In my opinion, it hurt the company more than it helped. I mean the deal with Google, when Google signed for Reddit’s data for its AI. Reddit is now feeling that it was a real disaster. And in the same year, the same mistake again, this time a deal with OpenAI. Today Reddit pays for it with a falling stock and fewer visits directly to its own site.

Then 2025: Reddit sued Anthropic. And in the same year it sued Perplexity and several scraping companies that, according to Reddit, lived for free by taking its data completely for free. All of this was slowly killing Reddit, and Reddit is now truly bleeding. And why? Because AI already takes too much from us. Somebody has to stop it, if it isn’t too late.

Finally, someone fights back

But what deserves praise: Reddit has a big name and big influence, and it decided to fight. On October 31 its public API stops accepting new requests. God, I’m glad somebody is starting to deal with this. So much that I have goosebumps, that it is possible to stand up to this and fight for what we create.

On November 13, RSS ends. I hope it means AI without a deal will not get in anymore. When you write about some news and ask what people on Reddit are saying about the new iPhone, AI will maybe answer: sorry, I have limited access to Reddit, I can’t tell you, here is a link, you have to read it yourself. Thank God for that.

And I like that we will find out in spring how it works, because in March 2027 the rest of the public API ends for good. Then we will see if it helps or not. I’m curious. And I’m glad Reddit said it: no more free data from us. You want data? Send us people, or pay. And pay properly, not some crumbs.

Date	Reddit closes the door
2023	Paid API, thousands of subreddits go dark in protest
2024	Data deals with Google and OpenAI
2025	Lawsuits against Anthropic, Perplexity and scraping firms
Oct 31, 2026	Public API stops accepting new requests
Nov 13, 2026	RSS feeds end
Q4 2026	Logged-in-only tests outside the US
March 2027	Remaining public API access ends

The weak spot: a bot makes an account in three seconds

The only bad thing: from everything we know, a bot can create an account in three seconds. That is the weak point.

And how Reddit wants to defend the contracts it has with AI, that I’m curious about. Will it see that it lost more because of those contracts, or will it deal with it somehow? They didn’t tell us. We are waiting for a bigger statement.

That Google stays inside for now is, the way I see it, only a question of time. For Reddit it may be better to destroy that contract completely, because otherwise it will be very hard to get back the people who used to come directly to it. I’m sure the contracts with OpenAI and Google have to change.

It is not a paradox. It is a monopoly

Some say it’s a paradox that Reddit grew on Google. But many giants grew on Google, because Google with its search engine is a monopolist, and everybody knows it. People typing “reddit” into the search engine is a completely normal thing.

The sad side is that Google now takes people away from companies while it knows it is killing their business, and nobody does anything about it. Or maybe now they will start.

People write that this will kill Reddit’s traffic from Google and that Reddit won’t appear in AI search summaries anymore. But that is exactly what waits for us anyway: chewed-up AI summaries from the AI companies, nothing more.

Why this is very serious

If somebody doesn’t understand and thinks this is not serious, I’ll tell you: it is the opposite, it is very serious. Because we will allow AI to feed us with whatever it wants, and we don’t know what they will be ordered to show, and who will order what information to push on us.

If you say “I will read somewhere else and compare the information”, you are wrong. It will not be that simple. If the AI industry keeps going against independence at this pace, by 2030 we will read only PR articles, and about the news we will know only what AI shows us. That means whoever has more money in politics will also win. We have to resist this and go against it.

The big sites stayed silent

What fascinates me: almost none of the big players said their opinion. They took the topic and just rewrote it neutrally, as if it doesn’t concern them. Or maybe Google gives them more than the others.

Look: the big players gave almost no opinion, even though they knew it was bad. Nothing. I think they know that if they say something, they won’t get into AI search or summaries anymore. That’s how afraid they are. And that is our future.

Here is what independent writers can do

I want Reddit to roll this out, and we will wait a lot for how successful it will be. If the content doesn’t get into AI when AI doesn’t get it, at least we have hope that those of us who write independently can do the same as Reddit, and force Google, Perplexity and the other AI players to show only links so a person goes to the source. Then journalists and big players will be safe.

And I would really like Reddit to tell us how it works, and whether the traffic from Google has stabilized. I really feel sorry for Reddit.

One request to everyone who reads

Now I ask everyone who reads for just one thing. When you look for information, help the authors and the people who say their own opinion and how they see it. Don’t read it through Gemini or a quick summary of a YouTube video. Go to their website. They pay their bills from it, and that is what allows them to stay independent.

Also on Evolt News: Google AI learns from us, and nobody pays publishers · HomePod mini 2 and the fine print

Photo: Steve Huffman at Web Summit 2017. Web Summit, CC BY 2.0.

This article is opinion.

Reddit logged-in only: FAQ

Will Reddit require an account to read posts?

Reddit says it is moving to a logged-in-only experience. Tests start in Q4 2026 in select markets outside the US. Logged-out visitors should still see the front page and posts reached from search engines or shared links, but not browse subreddits. Details are still being finalized.

Why is Reddit doing this?

Steve Huffman listed user experience, ad targeting, engagement, protecting Reddit’s data from scraping, and regulation. Reddit also reported that search referrals fell by more than 1 million visits a week, and Huffman said Google’s AI Mode does not drive traffic.

When do Reddit’s API and RSS feeds end?

Reddit’s public API stops accepting new access requests on October 31, 2026. RSS feeds end on November 13, 2026, and the remaining public API access ends in March 2027.

Can Google and OpenAI still use Reddit data?

Reddit signed data licensing deals with Google and OpenAI in 2024 and says it will keep licensing its data with guardrails. The logged-in requirement is aimed mainly at unauthorized scraping.

Why did Reddit stock fall?

Reddit beat revenue estimates with $895 million in Q3 2026, but US daily users fell 2%, search referrals dropped, Q4 profit guidance was below estimates, and Reddit warned daily users could fall in Q4. The stock fell around 25% on October 30.

Sources: Reddit shareholder letter, Axios, Engadget, 9to5Google, 9to5Mac, Slashdot, Reuters.

Our Take

Reddit is in trouble because AI takes the work of people and keeps the visitors for itself. Now someone big said no.

AI can help. But it must send people to the source. If it doesn’t, by 2030 we will only know what AI decides to show us.