OpenAI and News Corp Forge Landmark Multi-Year Deal for AI Training with Premium Journalism

In a groundbreaking partnership, OpenAI and News Corp have entered a multi-year agreement to integrate news from some of the world’s most prominent publishing brands into ChatGPT. This strategic deal, announced on Wednesday, allows OpenAI access to both current and archived content from News Corp’s diverse portfolio, which includes The Wall Street Journal, MarketWatch, The Sun, and over a dozen other influential publications. While the financial specifics were not disclosed, The Wall Street Journal estimated that News Corp would receive $250 million over five years in cash and credits.

Elevating Journalism in the Digital Age

News Corp Chief Executive Robert Thomson emphasized the significance of this partnership in a memo to employees, highlighting that it underscores the value of premium journalism in the digital age. “The pact acknowledges that there is a premium for premium journalism,” Thomson remarked. He noted that the digital era has often seen distributors dominate at the expense of content creators, with many media companies struggling to keep pace with rapid technological advancements. This agreement represents a critical opportunity for News Corp to leverage its high-quality journalism in a new, technologically advanced medium.

A New Era for AI and Journalism

Since the launch of ChatGPT at the end of 2022, generative AI has seen a meteoric rise in popularity. The quality of responses from AI-powered chatbots hinges heavily on the data used to train their underlying models. Historically, AI companies have relied on scraping publicly available data from the internet, frequently without explicit consent from content creators. However, there is a growing trend towards establishing financial agreements with news organizations to ensure access to current and authoritative information for AI model training.

This collaboration between OpenAI and News Corp is part of a broader shift within the AI industry towards more ethical and reliable data sourcing. Over the past few months, OpenAI has announced similar partnerships with various esteemed organizations, including Reddit, the Financial Times, Dotdash Meredith, the Associated Press, and German publisher Axel Springer, which owns Politico and Business Insider in the US and Bild and Die Welt in Germany. Furthermore, Spain’s Prisa Media is also part of this expanding network of content providers. Notably, News Corp recently secured a deal with Google, reportedly worth between $5 and $6 million, to facilitate AI training.

Competitive Landscape and Industry Implications

The competitive landscape for AI model training is intensifying. Hours before the News Corp announcement, Business Insider reported that Meta was considering similar agreements with news publishers to enhance its AI training data. Meta has already integrated its AI chatbot into platforms like Facebook, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram, and it offers AI-powered sunglasses as part of its product lineup.

These deals are becoming increasingly vital revenue streams for a news industry that has faced significant financial challenges in recent years. Despite the potential financial benefits, some publishers remain cautious. The New York Times has taken legal action against OpenAI and Microsoft for using its content without permission for AI training. Moreover, notable entities like the NYT, the BBC, and The Verge have blocked OpenAI from scraping their websites, signaling ongoing tensions and the need for clear guidelines and fair practices in this evolving field.

The Future of AI and Journalism

The alliance between OpenAI and News Corp sets a precedent for how AI and journalism can coexist and mutually benefit from each other. By leveraging News Corp’s premium content, OpenAI can enhance the accuracy and reliability of its AI models, ultimately providing users with more trustworthy and insightful responses. For News Corp, this partnership offers a new avenue for monetizing its content and underscores the enduring value of high-quality journalism in the digital age.

As AI continues to evolve and integrate more deeply into various aspects of life and work, partnerships like this one will play a crucial role in shaping the future of information dissemination and consumption. The collaboration between OpenAI and News Corp is a significant step towards a more ethical, sustainable, and symbiotic relationship between technology and journalism.