In a recent State of Websites report released by Wix, the AI‑driven website builder, data from 310 million users reveals a dramatic acceleration in getting online. The average time to launch a live, secure business site fell by 50 percent over the past year, shrinking from eight days to just four.
Industry‑wide speed gains
The trend spans every sector. Restaurants now publish sites in seven days, down from 13; e‑commerce businesses cut their build time from 14 days to a week. Beauty and wellness firms saw a 55 percent reduction, moving from 20 days to nine. These figures demonstrate that AI tools are helping entrepreneurs bring products and services to market faster without sacrificing quality.
Human touch remains essential
Even with AI assistance, the report underscores the importance of personal input. Ninety‑one percent of users still rewrite their own copy, and 69 percent replace stock images with original photos. This blend of technology and human creativity ensures that each site retains a distinctive, authentic voice.
How users employ Wix’s AI agent
More than eight in ten (84 percent) of premium sites that did not start with AI eventually used Wix’s AI website‑building agent. Users who built sites manually still sent an average of nine messages to the AI per session. Of those interactions, 93 percent were design‑related, 40 percent sought technical help, and 16 percent requested copywriting assistance.
Advanced AI integration via Model Context Protocol
In 2025, roughly 32,000 users leveraged the Model Context Protocol (MCP) to connect external AI tools such as Claude directly to their Wix sites. MCP sessions totaled 102 million, allowing site owners to manage content and troubleshoot through natural‑language conversation.
What the numbers mean for small businesses
The data points to a clear takeaway: AI dramatically speeds up website creation, but owners retain final control over branding, messaging, and visual presentation. For local entrepreneurs, this means a faster path from concept to revenue‑generating online presence, while still delivering a personal touch that resonates with customers.
Looking ahead
Wix plans to continue expanding AI capabilities, emphasizing collaboration rather than replacement. As more businesses adopt these tools, the expectation is that the national economy will benefit from quicker digital adoption, especially among small‑to‑medium enterprises that rely on an online storefront to compete.
Original reporting: KTVZ (Central Oregon) — read the source article.
