AI’s Bandwidth Boom: How Artificial Intelligence Is Reshaping Internet Usage

Artificial Intelligence is no longer a futuristic buzzword — it’s an everyday business tool. From generative AI platforms like ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot to machine learning models powering real-time analytics, customer service, and cybersecurity, AI has gone mainstream.

But while most of the conversation has focused on data privacy, automation, and ethics, there’s another massive shift underway: AI is transforming the way we use the internet.

As organizations across every industry embrace AI on a scale, they’re also encountering a new challenge: exponential growth in data transfer, processing requirements, and bandwidth demand. This is not a theoretical problem — it’s already happening. And IT leaders must start preparing now.

AI doesn’t just require computing power — it demands consistent, high-volume connectivity. Whether you’re using a generative model for content creation or deploying real-time fraud detection tools, AI workloads are data-intensive by nature.

You can be selective with what bots can access and what bots cannot. Just takes some homework to create that block/allow list. Probably just allow the biggest most popular search engine bots and block all the rest. But my whole complaint is that hosts are not helping with this issue when they absolutely should be. They should supply a filter to block AI as part of their service. It is also in their best interest too. While they might be making more money now from the AI issue, AI is going to put them completely out of business in the long run.

As for self hosting that is a double edged Sword. I don’t blame the FR for getting second party hosting. The server infrastructure maintenance hardware etc. is on the host. They can handle a lot more traffic capacity if needed. And they do have some tools they supply that are extremely helpful, especially security tools. So it has it’s advantages.

But at the same time it now looks like hosting is going to collaborate with the powers that be and start allowing backdoor access to databases and user details. I think Palantir is doing that right now by setting up total collection of everything from everywhere. That is when a private server would be an advantage. But you would still have to set up the bot controls and fight your own security problems.

I honestly can’t see an easy way to run from this mess as long as we continue to use the Top Level Domain and hosts do not help. Especially when it is a site that is open to the public out front. Ours is a closed private party and you have to log in to view it. This helps greatly because ALL access can be shut off to everyone including bots unless they are logged in as a trusted member.

The problem is you can block the bots but AI can still read and crawl the text on the public side. So it still ends up being a load. It would be just like massive human hits to the public side. If it is closed off from the public they cannot do this. See the situation they are putting us in? We have to pretty much shut down our own sites or sacrifice revenue, or give up the free advertising of normal search bots to get away from the AI. It is an extremely unfair business practice that needs to be addressed. And we haven’t even addressed the theft of copyrighted material AI is steal from domains yet.

I am now sure this is the plan. To destroy the open independent internet and independent hosting and make everyone dependent on their AI services. This will eliminate interaction and communication between humans. And it will give them complete control over information. They can literally alter reality and change history as they like. As you see they already are with search result control. The truth is, even though they advertise that they have AI available as an “option”, they have actually already implemented it as their main search protocol and are hiding this fact. They are not using regular old school webcrawlers anymore, it is all AI based collection and information control.

Like I say, it is a fun free toy now, but in the long run we are going to pay dearly. We are going to lose the open independent internet as we now know it. And if the hosting industry wants to continue to exist they better get on board now before it is too late. And it is time for domain owners to get proactive and put pressure on them.

“Perhaps it is time for fr and others to close down access and go back to the old ring model?”

You are the first here who actually “gets it”! Absolutely! We are going to be forced to go underground and off the mainstream Top Level Domain layer (surface web). Back to similar to dialup days, the Ring and BBS days, when everyone hosted their own server. But it is much easier easier now.

Now days there are actually P2P local desktop clients that let you do this efficiently. They are both a secure browser and personal server both. So there is absolutely no need for any of the centralized TLD controls. They work directly client to client and do not even need a central server at all. You do not even have to get domain names or deal with any of that control current industry control.

But to build a secure trusted network would be no problem at all with one of these client protocols. I have been hollering for a couple years now. If we do not start looking into this option it is all going to be gone. No more human to human interaction at all.

And these have EXCELLENT military grade security. Everything is encrypted, they use TLS certificates, packages self destruct if they are tampered with in transit between end to end clients, connections are tunneled like a VPN by default, the IDs are so secure it would take a super computer ten years to hack an ID.

But here is the cool thing... They are modern and have modern features. They have email, personal display “walls” where you can post images and such as a profile page, file sharing, make group forums, personal blogs, group chat and private messaging with video and/or audio like a phone call, Etc. all from just a local desktop client.

Here is an example of just one of these protocols. But there are several client protocol options available:

https://retroshare.cc/

Thing is they are not in the current internet control/spy system... They are completely legal and utilize a different layer of the internet. They use the open “deep web”. Absolutely not to be confused with the “dark web”. They are not the same at all. The “dark web” is only the network used by the TOR browser. To be dark web it has to have a .onion address. Here is an explanation of the different layers:

https://www.everound.com/insights/understanding-the-layers-of-the-internet

Anyhow you are absolutely on the right track. Pretty soon (if not now) we are going to be forced to options like this if humans want to stay connected and keep each other sane...

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