Wikipedia Unveils Top 25 Most Viewed Pages of 2023, Showcasing Global Trends
In the latest release of Wikipedia’s annual roundup, the top 25 most viewed pages of 2023 offer a snapshot of global interests, spanning artificial intelligence innovation, notable deaths, and the rising influence of Indian users on the platform.
Run by the nonprofit Wikimedia Foundation, Wikipedia has garnered an astounding 84 billion page views in 2023, a testament to its continued significance as a knowledge hub.
Topping the list is the page dedicated to OpenAI’s virtual chatbot, ChatGPT, accumulating over 49.4 million views. ChatGPT’s skyrocketing popularity, marked by a record-breaking user base growth in February, highlights a heightened curiosity about the technology and its underlying context.
Anusha Alikhan, Chief Communications Officer at the Wikimedia Foundation, noted that ChatGPT is trained using Wikipedia data, emphasizing the platform’s pivotal role in shaping and enhancing large language models.
The top five most viewed pages also feature biographical posts on individuals who passed away in 2023, the 2023 Cricket World Cup, the Indian Premier League, and the film “Oppenheimer.”
India’s substantial presence on the list, constituting a fifth of the total entries, underscores the growing influence of the country’s users on global Wikipedia trends. With India poised to surpass China as the most populous country, the nation’s impact on the global media landscape is undeniable.
The 2023 Cricket World Cup, where India emerged as the runner-up, drew substantial attention, amassing over 38 million page views. This marked the first appearance of cricket-related articles in Wikipedia’s top 25, a noteworthy development for the sport.
The Indian Premier League, a Twenty20 Men’s Cricket league, secured two spots on the list, with the league page receiving over 32 million views and the 2023 season amassing more than 20 million views.
Additionally, pages related to two Bollywood action films, “Jawan” and “Pathaan,” outperformed highly-grossing American films like “Barbie” and “Avatar: The Way of Water.”
Despite the financial success of the Barbie film, which grossed over $1.4 billion globally, the Wikipedia page for the film “Oppenheimer” garnered more interest, receiving over 28 million page views. This aligns with the broader trend of users seeking detailed information and context on Wikipedia.
The top 25 list further features prominent figures in sports, entertainment, and business, with Taylor Swift, Elon Musk, and Lionel Messi commanding substantial viewership.
In a diverse compilation, Wikipedia’s most viewed pages of 2023 offer a fascinating glimpse into the global curiosity that fueled billions of searches throughout the year.
Less desirable topics and figures made the list too. Though somewhat overshadowed by news of the war in Gaza, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine saw close to 12.8 million views on Wikipedia.
Hamas’ attack on Israel, which sparked the newest chapter in a decades-long conflict, occurred later in the year, on October 7, which is likely why it didn’t make the list, compared to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine which started in February of 2022.
Last on the list was Andrew Tate, the bigoted and self-proclaimed misogynist influencer, who has been indicted of rape and human trafficking in Romania. His page received more than 12.7 million views.
Tate, who was re-platformed on X, formerly Twitter, following Musk’s ownership of the social media site, has prompted educators, police, human rights advocates and politicians to warn against his influence on youth, particularly young men.
A full list of pages, by rank and number of page views is available below.
- ChatGPT, 49,490,406 page views
- Deaths in 2023, 42,666,860
- 2023 Cricket World Cup, 38,171,653
- Indian Premier League, 32,012,810
- Oppenheimer (film), 28,348,248
- Cricket World Cup, 25,961,417
- J. Robert Oppenheimer, 25,672,469
- Jawan (film), 21,791,126
- 2023 Indian Premier League, 20,694,974
- Pathaan (film), 19,932,509
- The Last of Us (TV series), 19,791,789
- Taylor Swift, 19,418,385
- Barbie (film), 18,051,077
- Cristiano Ronaldo, 17,492,537
- Lionel Messi, 16,623,630
- Premier League, 16,604,669
- Matthew Perry, 16,454,666
- United States, 16,240,461
- Elon Musk, 14,370,395
- Avatar: The Way of Water, 14,303,116
- India, 13,850,178
- Lisa Marie Presley, 13,764,007
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, 13,392,917
- Russian invasion of Ukraine, 12,798,866
- Andrew Tate, 12,728,616
