As AI data scrapers sap websites' revenues, some fight back

Cloudflare, which processes more than 20% of all Internet traffic, announced this summer a new measure aimed at blocking AI crawlers from accessing content without payment or permission from website owners. — Pixabay

LISBON: A swarm of AI "crawlers" is running rampant on the Internet, scouring billions of websites for data to feed algorithms at leading tech companies – all without permission or payment, upending the online economy.

Before the rise of AI chatbots, websites allowed search engines to access their content in return for increased visibility, a system that rewarded them with traffic and advertising revenues.