From June 4 to 6, the Registro .it participated at We Make Future (WMF) 2025, the international fair dedicated to Artificial Intelligence, technology, and digital innovation. The Registro .it hosted a dedicated booth and organized an event discussing the future of websites and SEO in the era of AI. WMF, an accelerator of culture and innovation, provided the perfect setting to discuss digital transformation and delve into the changes brought about by artificial intelligence, with particular focus on their impact on marketing, SEO, and online business.
At BolognaFiere, the Registro .it set up a dedicated stand to showcase the .it domain as a symbol of Made in Italy. The booth served as a privileged meeting space for registrars, web agencies, and marketers to discuss key topics such as domain names, brand awareness, and digital marketing strategies.
Additionally, at WMF, the Registro .it organised an event held on June 5 titled “Websites (and SEO) Are Not Dead: How to Survive the AI Era and Instant Answers.” The talk was led by Massimo Fellini (journalist, content manager, and expert in innovation and artificial intelligence) and featured industry experts like Mirko Bruni (CEO of The Fool, president of the Generations Observatory – Gens, and lecturer in Big Data and Business Analytics at the Salesian University Institute of Venice – IUSVE) and Luca Bove (founder of Local Strategy, digital and search marketing strategist, expert in Local SEO and Google Business Profile).
The central topic of the discussion was a hot and ever-evolving issue: how artificial intelligence is transforming the search experience and online visibility, and what it means today to rethink SEO and websites from a marketing perspective. The talk was preceded by a short speech by Chiara Spinelli, Head of the Communication Secretariat of the CNR-IIT, who presented the Registro .it and its commitment promoting and enhancing the .it domain, as well as supporting companies and freelancers by assisting them with their online identity , especially amid the ongoing changes brought about by Artificial Intelligence.
Fellini opened the event with an overview of the growing use of language models replacing traditional search engines, noting that “from May 2024 to February 2025, major U.S. news websites experienced a 15% drop in traffic from Google. However, there has been a 'relative' explosion in traffic from chatbots (ChatGPT, Gemini, etc.), which has increased by 2100%. To put this into perspective, in the U.S. market during the specified period, AI-driven visits totaled six million, compared to 2.3 billion from Google, indicating a reduction by a factor of 400. When users focus on AI Overviews, we observe a 34% decrease in click-through rates on the first and second links returned by Google.” These significant numbers are worth considering, not only for those looking to launch a website or landing page but also for those who already have a site, to understand how to implement and optimize it.
“Zero-click results are crucial for certain categories, such as the publishing industry,” stated Bove. “In the past, there was an unwritten agreement between publishers and Google, where Google 'stole' information and in return provided substantial traffic. With AI, this agreement is no longer valid, and a new business model is required, which is still unknown. For other categories like e-commerce or physical retail, whether we make a purchase or visit a restaurant, zero-click results are not a problem because the goal has still been achieved.” Therefore, a decline in clicks and harm to online business do not always go hand in hand, it depends on the specific business activities considered.
It is undeniable that we are witnessing a new revolution, characterized by change and great complexity. In this context, Bruni emphasized that “we are already accustomed to changes and rapidly changing rules. We are used to a world in constant evolution, and we will likely find new ideas and solutions to the zero-click problem. Half of searches already lead to zero-click results: we are talking about traffic on the SERP that doesn't reach the website because the user is satisfied with the knowledge graph, changes their mind, or is simply searching for an actor's name, for example, and many searches don't go beyond that. Certainly, AI Overviews provide the information we seek, will reduce search traffic, but we must come to terms with it.”
The real question to ask is why Google chooses to invest in the Overview feature an amount of resources equal to eight times its usual costs without obtaining a direct return in terms of monetization. The answer was once again provided by the CEO of The Fool: “Here we are not talking about a business model for a search, but we are talking about what some compare to the space race we saw in the 1960s with government investments: Google does it because whoever dominates AI dominates the world.”
Among the various insights from the talk, a key point emerged: the relationship between search and websites may not be as indispensable as often believed. In this regard, Bruni pointed out that while most traffic comes from search engines, that is not the only strategic lever to attract users to one's site, and given the ongoing change, we currently have the opportunity to revisit strategies to promote one's business and website.
AI is not an enemy but a tool to integrate into one's web projects, and this phase can be seen as an opportunity to go beyond traditional channels and rethink website content. We don't necessarily have to focus solely on text: multilingual avatars, chatbots, interactive videos, podcasts, and personalized content are new creative and functional possibilities to enhance website information and strengthen the online presence of businesses and freelancers.
The website remains a fundamental element of the online presence, a proprietary space independent from the major players in the sector (Google, Meta, TikTok, etc.), where we can truly exercise full control over content and data. In this context, the website becomes a genuine data hub, a space to communicate directly, assert one's identity, and act without intermediaries.
At the end of the event, speakers and participants shared an informal moment with pre-dinner cocktails and conversation, providing an opportunity for networking, discussion, and reflection on the digital future.