AI Search Drives Traffic to Least Accessible Web Pages, AudioEye Report Finds
Event summary
- AudioEye's 2026 Digital Accessibility Index scanned over 165,000 pages across 6,100 domains in the U.S. and Europe.
- Interior pages average 10% more accessibility issues than homepages and receive two-thirds of AI-driven traffic.
- The average webpage contains 62 accessibility issues, with 21% blocking critical tasks like purchases or form submissions.
- EU sites have 25% more accessibility issues per page than U.S. sites as the European Accessibility Act's enforcement ramps up.
The big picture
AudioEye's report highlights a critical gap in digital accessibility compliance, as AI search engines increasingly direct users to less accessible interior pages. This trend coincides with accelerating litigation and stricter enforcement under the European Accessibility Act, creating a 'perfect storm' of compliance risk for organizations. The findings underscore the need for comprehensive accessibility programs that extend beyond homepages to protect entire web presences.
What we're watching
- Regulatory Headwinds
- The pace at which the European Accessibility Act's enforcement will impact non-compliant EU sites.
- AI Search Impact
- How AI search engines' routing of users to interior pages will affect litigation risk and compliance strategies.
- Compliance Execution
- Whether organizations can adapt their accessibility programs fast enough to address the growing number of issues on interior pages.
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