AI bots blocked by default: should you let them in?
A company that sits in front of a large share of the web just changed the default for AI crawlers. For publishers it's protection; for small businesses it could quietly remove them from AI answers.
By the Xuru Technologies team · 2 July 2025
Key takeaways
- On 1 July 2025 Cloudflare announced that new domains would block known AI crawlers by default, with site owners able to opt in.
- It also introduced a pay-per-crawl model in private beta, letting publishers charge AI crawlers.
- Crawlers used for AI training and for AI search answers are different; blocking all of them can reduce visibility.
- Businesses that want to be recommended by AI assistants should check their settings.
If customers ask ChatGPT, Perplexity or Google's AI for a recommendation, those systems need to be able to read your website. A default block could be costing you visibility without you knowing.
What happened
MIT Technology Review reported Cloudflare's move, framed as giving content owners control and a way to be paid when AI companies use their work.
What it means for businesses
- Publishers and creators gain leverage over how their content is used.
- Service businesses usually want visibility — being cited by AI is free marketing.
- Training vs search crawlers. Some bots gather data for training; others fetch pages to answer live questions.
- Check, don't assume. Your hosting or CDN may have changed settings for you.
How to decide
| If your goal is… | Consider |
|---|---|
| Being recommended in AI answers | Allow AI search crawlers; keep key pages accessible |
| Protecting premium content | Block training crawlers; gate premium material |
| Balance | Allow search, restrict training, review quarterly |
Frequently asked questions
Does blocking AI crawlers affect Google rankings?
Blocking AI-specific crawlers doesn't block Googlebot. But Google's AI features use its own systems, so check settings carefully.
How do I see which bots visit my site?
Hosting logs, CDN dashboards and analytics tools show bot traffic by user agent.
Can small websites charge AI companies?
Pay-per-crawl schemes are aimed mainly at publishers with valuable content. Most small businesses benefit more from visibility.
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