There has been a lot of talk lately about websites becoming obsolete because of AI.

Some are even predicting that within a year or two, businesses won’t really need websites anymore.

My team at Cogo Interactive has been building websites and helping small businesses get found online since 2009, and I don’t buy that argument.

But I do think something important is happening.

The role of your website is changing.

People are increasingly using ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews and other AI tools to research businesses, products and services before they ever visit a website.

Forty-three percent of U.S. online shoppers used an AI assistant for product research in the past 90 days, and one in four people now name AI as their primary source for recommendations, ahead of brand websites and reviews.

So yes, your website may be losing part of the job it used to have.

It used to be one of the primary ways people found you.

Increasingly, AI may find you for them.

But that doesn’t make your website less important.

AI is changing how businesses get discovered

This is where I think businesses need to pay attention.

AI doesn’t recommend businesses the same way traditional Google search ranked websites.

One interesting example is YouTube.

A hrefs analyzed more than three million U.S. queries in September 2026 and found that YouTube was the most-cited domain in Google’s AI Overviews at 22.9 percent, ahead of Reddit at 18.5 percent.

Similarweb also tracked 1.3 billion AI chatbot referral visits in a single month and found YouTube was the top destination, receiving 37.9 million visits.

Why?

One reason is that a good video transcript contains exactly the kind of information AI is looking for: clear, specific answers to real questions

You don’t necessarily need a huge audience.

Otterly’s 2026 research found almost no relationship between the number of views a video receives and whether AI cites it. The same was true for likes and subscriber counts.

That means a useful video with 200 views may still provide AI with information it wants to reference.

For a small business, that’s a pretty big opportunity.

But people still want to check you out

This is the part of the “websites are dying” argument that I think gets overlooked.

Getting recommended isn’t the same thing as getting hired.

People still want to know who they’re dealing with.

They want to see your work. Read about your services. Look at reviews. Understand your process. See whether you seem credible. And, depending on the business, find out what something is likely to cost.

In fact, 85 percent of people verify information they receive from AI before acting on it.

Next found that 58 percent visit the business’s website to do that. Semrush put the number at 48 percent.

Either way, the behavior is clear.

AI may introduce someone to your business, but your website still has to convince them.

I think of it this way:

• Your website used to be both the front door and the sales room.
• AI is increasingly becoming another front door.
• But your website is still where a lot of the decision gets made.

Should businesses start shrinking their websites?

I wouldn’t.

In fact, I think that could be exactly the wrong move.

AI needs information about your business before it can understand or recommend you.

What services do you provide?

Who do you work with?

Where do you work?

What problems do you solve?

How does your process work?

What makes you different?

What does your service cost?

Those answers should exist somewhere that search engines and AI systems can find and understand them.

For most businesses, their website is still the best place to build that foundation.

So reducing a useful 30-page website to a one-page site because “AI is replacing websites” could actually remove much of the information AI needs to understand your business.

Your website now has three jobs

I see the modern business website doing three things at the same time.

1. Convert visitors into customers

People still need somewhere to call, schedule, request a quote, fill out a form or make a purchase.

2. Validate the recommendation

Someone may first hear about you from ChatGPT, Google, YouTube or another source. Your website helps them decide whether that recommendation was a good one.

3. Help search engines and AI understand your business

Your website provides detailed, structured information about who you are, what you do, who you serve and where you operate.

That third job has become much more important.

And that’s why I don’t think businesses need less website content in the age of AI.

They need better content

What should a small business do right now?

I wouldn’t panic or rebuild your entire marketing strategy around AI.

I’d start with four practical things.

Answer the questions your customers actually ask.

Talk about pricing, process, timelines, common problems, how to choose a provider and what people should know before hiring someone.

That content is useful to your prospects and gives AI more information to work with.

Make sure your website is technically understandable.

Structured data and schema markup can help search engines better understand your business, services, locations and other important information.

Start using video.

You don’t need a studio or thousands of subscribers.

Take one question a customer regularly asks you and answer it clearly on video. Then do another one.

You’re creating useful information for people while also building another source AI systems can potentially discover and reference.

Get specific about who you help.

This is becoming increasingly important.

People don’t always ask AI something broad like “find me a roofer.”

They may ask:

“Who is a good roofer in Northern Virginia for replacing a 20-year-old roof on a townhouse?”

The more clearly your online presence explains exactly what you do, where you do it and who you help, the easier it becomes for AI to determine whether your business fits that question.

So, are websites becoming obsolete?

No.

But their role in the buying process is changing.

AI is becoming another layer between your business and the customer. It can research options, answer questions and recommend companies before someone ever reaches your website.

That means businesses now have to think about two things:

Can AI find and understand my business?

And once someone finds me:

Does my website give them a reason to choose me?

At Cogo Interactive, we’re helping our clients address both sides of that equation.

If you’re not sure how visible your business is in AI search, Google and local search, start with our free Online Visibility Audit. It takes just a couple of minutes and shows you where you’re strong and where you’re being overlooked.

And if AI visibility is one of those gaps, that’s exactly what our AI SEO service is designed to address by bringing together your website, local search, Google Business Profile and AI search optimization.

Your website isn’t disappearing. Its job is evolving.

And that’s a change small businesses should start preparing for now.