Notwithstanding the fact that an estimated 30% of all B2B searches now start in ChatGPT, Search Engine Journal (SEJ) published an article on March 11, 2025, titled “Google Search is 373x Bigger Than ChatGPT Search”, authored by Managing Editor Danny Goodwin. The article leans heavily on data presented by SparkToro’s Rand Fishkin and claims that Google Search grew significantly in 2024, while ChatGPT’s influence on the search market remains negligible.
At first glance, the numbers seem definitive: Google handled over 5 trillion searches in 2024, while ChatGPT saw an estimated 37.5 million search-like prompts per day—equating to just 0.25% of the search market.
But beneath this headline lies a problematic narrative, built on selective framing, a misunderstanding (or misrepresentation) of what AI tools like ChatGPT do, and a clear industry bias that favors the status quo.
Let’s unpack what’s really going on.
1. Apples and Oranges: Misclassifying “Search”
The core flaw in SEJ’s analysis lies in conflating traditional search behavior with generative AI usage. ChatGPT is not a direct replacement for Google Search—it’s a fundamentally different technology designed for conversational problem-solving, synthesis, and automation.
Yes, some users may prompt ChatGPT with questions that resemble search intent, but the vast majority of usage includes:
Text generation
Code assistance
Email and content drafting
Simulations and analysis
Brainstorming and ideation
To treat every AI message as a “search” or ignore its unique function is misleading. Even SEJ admits only 30% of prompts are search-like (based on Semrush data). So why compare total Google searches to total ChatGPT usage? It’s a category error—a false equivalency designed to minimize ChatGPT’s relevance.
2. Pro-Google Bias and Industry Conflicts of Interest
SEJ is an influential voice in the SEO world, and SEO is still almost entirely Google-dependent. The publication’s advertising, partnerships, and editorial priorities reflect the continued centrality of Google as the de facto search monopoly.
Let’s be clear: if Google’s dominance were truly in decline, the entire SEO industry would be under threat. Therefore, SEJ has a vested interest in protecting the perception of Google’s relevance, even if it means oversimplifying the picture or dismissing emerging technologies like generative AI.
The article is framed to affirm the comfort zone of traditional marketers rather than challenge assumptions. It paints a one-sided view, portraying AI tools as overhyped while ignoring mounting evidence of behavioral change in how users access and interact with information.
3. Misuse of Metrics and Framing
The article claims that Google is 373x “bigger” than ChatGPT in search. But what does “bigger” even mean here? Let’s examine the flawed logic:
Volume ≠ Impact: Google may handle more queries, but a large portion of them are zero-click or navigational (e.g., “weather today” or “Facebook login”). These queries barely engage the web ecosystem.
Zero-click searches: The article acknowledges that 60% of Google searches ended without a click in 2024—over 3 trillion searches that generated no referral traffic to websites.
Meanwhile, ChatGPT usage is deeply immersive. Each prompt often substitutes multiple Google searches. Users walk away with summarized insights, not just blue links.
A user asking ChatGPT to plan a trip, write a business plan, or diagnose an error code bypasses dozens of traditional searches.
In short, the volume comparison is deceptive, and fails to account for depth and quality of engagement.
4. Ignoring Search Cannibalization and AI Overviews
The article proudly cites Google CEO Sundar Pichai, who claims that AI Overviews have increased search usage. But this too is misleading.
Yes, usage is up—but traffic to third-party sites is down. Why?
Because Google now answers many queries directly within the search engine, further cannibalizing clicks from creators, publishers, and businesses. ChatGPT is accused of cutting into Google’s dominance, but Google itself has been eroding the open web by turning search into a walled garden.
This nuance—critical to understanding the future of search—is missing from the SEJ article.
📈 5. ChatGPT’s Growth Isn’t About “Market Share”—It’s About Use Case Replacement
The narrative that ChatGPT hasn’t “captured” market share is rooted in an old model. Instead, ChatGPT is:
Replacing how we gather knowledge (summaries, research, synthesis)
Reducing the need for many Google queries altogether
Eliminating ad-driven content spam through direct generation
This is not a war for query volume. It’s a shift in how humans access knowledge.
And for a product that only launched 15 months ago, with no native browser or hardware stack, its impact is staggering. If ChatGPT is already handling over a billion prompts per day, and 30% are search-like, that means it’s processing >300 million search-like tasks per day—not a number to scoff at.
6. Strategic Distraction: The Illusion of Google’s “Victory”
By positioning Google as the “winner” through sheer volume, the article distracts from:
Innovation risk: Google’s core search product is increasingly criticized for low-quality results, ads overload, and spam content.
Consumer behavior: Younger users, developers, students, and creators are shifting toward tools like Perplexity, ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini.
B2B displacement: Entire workflows (summarization, research, SEO writing, customer service) are migrating to AI-first solutions.
The very fact that SEJ felt the need to publish this piece speaks to anxieties about disruption.
Final Thoughts: Don’t Let a Volume-Based Metric Blind You
It’s tempting to dismiss ChatGPT and AI tools as hype—but doing so reveals more about one’s economic incentives than reality.
Google’s trillion-query dominance is real. But the paradigm of search is changing, and so are the expectations of users. SEJ’s framing conveniently supports its advertiser and reader base but fails to present an intellectually honest debate about what’s next.
True analysis of the search landscape should include:
The shift from web search to AI-powered assistance
The loss of traffic due to zero-click behavior
The emergence of ChatGPT, Perplexity, and others as multi-task knowledge agents
The growing role of AI in replacing—not mimicking—search
Until then, we’ll continue to see headlines that measure progress by the wrong metrics—published by those most threatened by change and least willing to question the systems they’ve built their careers on. As someone who has spent years navigating both the marketing and emerging AI landscapes, I say this not with disdain, but with genuine concern: when we cling too tightly to legacy paradigms, we risk missing the very innovations that could move us all forward.
