Google is in discussions to license content from news publishers for use in its artificial intelligence products, according to a report from Bloomberg. The move marks a shift in how the tech giant engages with the media industry, which has raised concerns over the use of journalistic content to train AI models. Google has come in for particular criticism so far compared with its AI rivals as it has rolled out products such as AI Overviews and AI Mode, the latter of which debuted in the UK this week, without striking deals with publishers. The proposed pilot programme would reportedly…

Newsrooms across Latin America are pioneering low-cost, high-impact AI tools to streamline editorial work and unlock new formats, as shown in the first LATAM Newsroom AI Catalyst programme run by WAN-IFRA and supported by OpenAI. Over three months, 16 newsrooms from eight countries developed AI prototypes tailored to their specific challenges—from political reporting to audio production and commercial workflows. The projects offer a snapshot of how even small editorial teams can adopt AI to increase efficiency and impact without major investment or technical infrastructure. In Peru, El Comercio built a system to monitor political candidates during an election cycle featuring…

Fortune magazine is ramping up its use of artificial intelligence in news production with a new editorial push called Fortune Intelligence, aimed at accelerating breaking news coverage while maintaining human editorial oversight. The initiative, first reported by Semafor, will be led by Nick Lichtenberg, a former Fortune editor who returns to the company with a remit to explore how AI can help deliver faster, smarter business journalism. Announced internally last week, Fortune Intelligence will integrate AI tools not only in writing but also in graphics production and audio publishing, including transforming newsletter content into podcasts. Editor-in-Chief Alyson Shontell described the…

Substack is deepening its investment in video as it positions the platform to attract a wider range of creators and advertisers. The newsletter-based service has rolled out a series of video tools over the past year – including live streaming, mobile video posting and a TikTok-style discovery feed – designed to help creators boost engagement and subscriber numbers. The move, first reported by Digiday, comes as the broader creator economy shifts towards video and amid regulatory uncertainty around platforms like TikTok in the US. Substack’s video features are integrated directly into its app, allowing creators to publish and monetise content…

Reuters has named Rob Lang as its first newsroom AI editor, a new role aimed at accelerating the integration of artificial intelligence across editorial operations. He will take up the post on July 1, reporting to Jonathan Leff, global editor of newsroom AI and financial news strategy. The appointment reflects Reuters’ belief that AI will be central to how newsrooms operate. Lang has been global production editor for Reuters Video News, where he led major changes in video production and delivery. In his new role, he will develop practical editorial applications of AI, support experiments from Reuters bureaus, shape prompt…

Artificial Intelligence is reshaping journalism faster than any previous technological shift and demands urgent adaptation from media professionals, warned Rosental Alves at the 10th Innovation, Technology and Journalism conference in Buenos Aires. Alves, a veteran journalist and professor at the University of Texas at Austin, described the rise of AI as “an inevitable tsunami that is redefining journalism”. The pace of change, he said, is without precedent. “ChatGPT reached one million users in just five days,” he told the audience, “while Facebook took ten months and Netflix took three years. The important thing now is to become familiar with these…

Louis Dreyfus, the ceo of Le Monde, explained that he decided to sign deals with AI companies to allow them use the French newspaper’s content because they were doing it anyway. Speaking at WAN-IFRA’s Digital Media India conference in Chennai last week, Dreyfus said: “You can put a sign on your lawn that says ‘Please don’t walk on the lawn’. But do you think that people don’t walk on your lawn?” He said that this being the case, the business wanted some compensation and secured “very significant revenue” from its deal with OpenAI. It has also proved “a strong source…

Hearst has introduced a voice-controlled AI assistant on its recipe site Delish, offering home cooks hands-free guidance through recipes. The tool, called Cooking Coach, was originally developed as a weekend experiment by Alexandria Redmon, Hearst’s senior director of AI initiatives, and has since grown into a full-featured product that addresses common kitchen challenges like setting timers, adjusting portions and suggesting ingredient swaps. As first reported by Digiday, Cooking Coach is built using OpenAI’s GPT large language model and trained solely on Delish’s archive of more than 30,000 recipes. The assistant can walk users through step-by-step instructions, respond to questions in…

Bay City News, a small local nonprofit, has won plaudits for showing how artificial intelligence can enhance coverage without undermining trust. The publication, which serves the San Francisco Bay Area, recently won the 2024 Local Media Association Digital Innovation Award for the Most Innovative Use of AI in a News Organisation. The recognition came for its AI-driven approach to the 2024 election cycle, a complex logistical challenge involving hundreds of races across 13 counties. Bay City News combines a for-profit regional newswire with a nonprofit newsroom that powers its Local News Matters website. This structure has allowed it to experiment…

Investigative podcasts have become a fast-developing format for modern journalism, combining deep reporting with the immersive storytelling of long-form audio. Though still a niche within the broader podcasting ecosystem, their ability to explore complex subjects in rich detail, free from the time or space constraints of conventional media, has made them increasingly valuable to newsrooms looking to reach younger or underserved audiences. Outlets such as Poland’s Pismo Investigation and Lisbon-based Fumaça are among the European pioneers. Pismo has produced multiple acclaimed seasons, with its fifth series – released in April 2024 – examining harassment and institutional failure through multiple hour-long episodes. Fumaça…