In the past, AI tools started giving cooking advice that included unconventional suggestions, like using glue to make cheese stick on pizza. This year, many individuals are turning to such technology for help with preparing Thanksgiving dinner. This reliance on AI guidance is causing a notable decrease in traffic for recipe writers who typically experience a surge in visitors during this time of year, as reported by Bloomberg.

The root of the issue lies in the emergence of AI Overviews in Search, which offer users a concise summary of information without the need to visit a website and navigate through lengthy personal essays preceding recipes online. This poses two concerns. Firstly, recipe creators invest significant effort into developing and sharing their recipes, drawing from their culinary expertise and trial-and-error processes. The AI Overviews are diverting traffic away from these creators, resulting in significant declines in website visits compared to previous Thanksgivings, a trend observed across various platforms.

Secondly, users following AI-generated recipes risk receiving inaccurate instructions due to the AI’s limited comprehension of content. Cooking requires precision, and even minor errors can compromise the outcome of a dish. For example, a cook’s Christmas cake recipe may suggest baking at 160°C for 1.5 hours on the creator’s page, but an AI-summarised version recommends baking for three to four hours—more than double the necessary time. Such discrepancies could lead to disappointing results.

AI-generated recipes have spawned a niche industry on social media platforms, where users may encounter seemingly standard cooking inspiration pages with subtly flawed recipes. At best, these recipes may yield bland but edible dishes; at worst, they could result in kitchen disasters if followed verbatim. Therefore, it may be wise to refer back to traditional cookbooks this holiday season as a precautionary measure.