A new study from Pew Research Center documents a measurable increase in the share of AI-generated text appearing across web content following the public launch of ChatGPT in late 2022, according to reporting by The Decoder.
What Happened
Pew researchers analyzed web content to track changes in the prevalence of AI-written material before and after November 2022, when OpenAI's ChatGPT launched publicly. The study found that detectable AI-generated text rose sharply in the months following the chatbot's release. Researchers used detection tools and linguistic analysis methods to identify patterns consistent with large language model output across a range of web sources.
Why It Matters
The findings offer empirical grounding for what many observers have noted anecdotally since generative AI tools became widely accessible. For developers and publishers, the trend raises questions about content authenticity, search engine optimization practices, and reader trust. The study also provides a baseline for tracking how quickly AI-generated material continues to proliferate as model capabilities improve and usage barriers decline.
The Bottom Line
Pew's analysis confirms that the web landscape has shifted measurably since late 2022, with AI-written text comprising an increasingly visible share of online content. The research offers one of the more rigorous empirical snapshots of this trend to date.