The Internet of 2025: Expanded, Fragile, and 'Rewired' by AI

Highlights from ZDNET

The global network is evolving rapidly, yet it's not our increased video consumption that's behind this surge. According to Cloudflare, the growth largely comes from the realm of AI—particularly bots and automated systems. These digital entities are fundamentally altering how we interact with the internet, especially highlighted by the rise in mobile usage and quantum-resistant encryption techniques.

Surge of Automation: Bots and AI Crawlers

Bots, especially those harnessed for artificial intelligence purposes, are now pivotal in web traffic growth. Cloudflare's recent reports put AI bots at the forefront, as they aggressively pursue data for AI models, occasionally overwhelming websites with data demands akin to significant cyber threats.

CEO Matthew Prince of Cloudflare highlighted AI's pivotal role in shaping internet traffic in 2025. Tools like Googlebot increasingly dominate, with Google leading in AI-related requests, underscoring their importance in both indexing and AI data acquisition.

Other bots, although less prevalent, are experiencing growth too. Perplexity's offerings—robots triggered by user interactions—are seeing a substantial increase. Furthermore, the blend of traditional search and AI-driven chat increasingly influences web navigation habits.

Changing Access: The Mobile-Skewed Internet

Mobile phones, progressively dominating how we connect to the web, now account for a significant portion of internet access. Although iOS leads in premiums markets, globally, Android secures the majority with a significant hold on mobile traffic.

When it comes to web browsers, Google Chrome unsurprisingly holds a commanding position across platforms, both desktop and mobile, with Microsoft's Edge and Apple's Safari trailing behind.

Where the Web Leads Us

Dominant giants like Google and Facebook unsurprisingly remain at the forefront of the digital landscape. In terms of artificial intelligence, ChatGPT tops the ranks, followed closely by Claude/Anthropic and Perplexity.

Social networks maintain predictable ranks too, with Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn making up the top spots. Video streaming is similarly led by YouTube and Netflix, continuing to captivate audiences globally.

Internet Speed Versus Accessibility

Certain nations starkly contrast in terms of internet speed and infrastructure. Countries like Spain, South Korea, and Hungary boast the fastest broadband, outpacing North American counterparts. Despite this, some regions still lack adequate speeds.

Connectivity through Satellites

Satellite internet is transitioning from experimental to mainstream, spearheaded by massive growth in Starlink's network. New installations strengthen rural connectivity and reshape traffic patterns, although competition is incoming from ambitious new satellite projects.

Post-Quantum Encryption: A New Standard

The shift toward more secure post-quantum encryption methods is notable, with a significant chunk of human-generated web interactions now protected by advanced TLS protocols. These advancements signal an evolution towards safeguarding data against future quantum attacks.

Navigating a More Hostile Digital World

While connectivity expands, security threats intensify, painting a picture of a more vulnerable network. DDoS attacks are growing in frequency and scale, and significant outages often stem from intentional disruptions or failures in infrastructure. These incidents underscore the fragility and dependence on the complex, centralized systems governing today's internet.

The reliance on digital infrastructures has reached unprecedented levels, raising concerns about global impacts should widespread service downtime occur. With our dependency only likely to grow, addressing the internet's brittleness remains critical.