Wikipedia at 25: A Wake-Up Call

> This is a personal essay. It reflects the views of the author.

> By Christopher Henner - schiste · January 10, 2026. Former Chair of the Board of Trustees, Wikimedia Foundation. 20-year Wikimedian

Anecdotally, I strongly prefer Wikipedia (when available) over LLMs, because Wikipedia is not only more reliable but also more concise. I will keep preferring Wikipedia unless LLMs become more reliable and concise, and if that ever happens I think Wikipedia is doomed no matter what.

If there are ways to gain views without sacrificing quality, like better search, I’m all for them. But I don’t see an urgent need for change; Wikipedia has plenty of funding, volunteers, and users like me.

Claude says this about the text:

"This essay by Christopher Henner, a former Wikimedia Foundation Board Chair, argues that Wikipedia faces an existential crisis: while global internet users grew 83% since 2016, Wikipedia's page views declined 9%, and new contributor registrations dropped 36%. He attributes this to Wikipedia's failure to serve the Global South (where most new internet users came from), its outdated desktop-centric design, and AI systems that train on Wikipedia content without sending traffic back. Henner calls for urgent action within two years, including diversified revenue through AI partnerships, aggressive investment in knowledge equity, and a willingness to fundamentally restructure the organization's governance and priorities.

As for whether he's whining: I'd say no. The piece is data-driven, self-critical (he acknowledges his own role in building the systems that created these problems), and proposes concrete solutions rather than just lamenting the situation. It reads more like a wake-up call from someone who genuinely cares about an institution he's devoted two decades to, even if the tone is occasionally dramatic. The frustration is palpable, but it's directed at mobilizing action rather than seeking sympathy."

Please, feel free to use this summary and save precious time instead of reading the long, oh so long, text that is linked to.

Regards.

The Expanding What We Measure section was very nice to see. Thank god somebody is attempting to measure more qualitative metrics like the experience of contributing rather than annoying people into clicking around more.