Wikipedia most viewed pages of 2023 shouldn't be a surprise

Ever wonder what other people spend all their time searching for online? Most of us can hardly remember what we searched for five minutes ago.

Luckily, Wikipedia has kept the receipts, and today reveals its most searched-for pages of 2023 – and some of them will come as no surprise.

English language Wikipedia got an incredible 84bn views this year, according to the Wikimedia Foundation, which runs the online encyclopaedia.

And the highest number of those went to…

1. ChatGPT – 49.4m views

Since it launched more than a year ago, ChatGPT has burst into our imaginations whether we like it or not.

Some people have spent the year anxiously looking over their shoulder in case a robot takes their job – others are convinced it’s going to spell the end of humanity.

Unsurprisingly, it got more interest than anything else on Wikipedia, as debates continue to rage over the promise and pitfalls of AI.

2. Deaths in 2023 – 42.6m views

Unfortunately, 2023 has heralded the death of several cultural giants.

They range from Friends star Matthew Perry to music icon Sinéad O’Connor, and from actor Michael Gambon to Strictly Come Dancing judge Len Goodman.

And just last week, Shane McGowan, lead singer of The Pogues, also died. It’s been a sad year.

Wikipedia collects the notable names, along with dates of birth and death, on one page, which is frequently among its most visited each year.

Netflix

3. The 2023 Cricket World Cup – 38.1m views

You might not think it if you live in England – and especially not in the US – but cricket is the world’s second most popular sport.

That is largely down to its huge fanbase in India, which is also the world’s most populous country, according to Statista.

And guess who hosted the Cricket World Cup this year? Yep, that’s right, and host nation India also made it all the way to the final, where they were beaten by the Australians.

Nice to see the English are not the only ones in 2023 who are loudly cursing – but quietly admiring – those damn Aussies.

Incredibly, the Indian Premier League and the standalone page "Cricket World Cup” also took fourth and sixth, respectively.

4. Indian Premier League – 32m views. Incredibly, the standalone page "Cricket World Cup” took sixth as well.

5. Oppenheimer– 28.3m views

PMC - The Hollywood Reporter / VideoElephant

6. Cricket World Cup – 25.9m views.

7. J. Robert Oppenheimer – 25.6m views

Christopher Nolan’s film about J. Robert Oppenheimer may not have beaten Barbie at the box office, but it smashed it on Wikipedia at least.

8. Jawan (Indian film) – 21.7m views

9. 2023 Indian Premier League – 20.6m views

10. Pathaan (Indian film) – 19.9m views

11. The Last of Us– 19.7 views

12. Taylor Swift – 19.4m views

13. Barbie (film) – 18m views

PMC - The Hollywood Reporter / VideoElephant

14. Cristiano Ronaldo– 17.4m views

15. Lionel Messi– 16.6m views

16. Premier League– 16.6m views

17. Matthew Perry– 16.4m views

18. United States – 16.2m views

19. Elon Musk– 14.3m views

Patrick Pleul/Pool/AFP via Getty Images

20. Avatar: The Way of Water – 14.3m views

21. India – 13.8m views

22. Lisa Marie Presley – 13.7m views

23. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3– 13.3m views

24. Russian invasion of Ukraine– 12.7m views

25. Andrew Tate– 12.7m views

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