OpenAI has struck yet another deal with a prominent media company. This time, it's The Atlantic. Like the others before it, as part of the deal, The Atlantic’s content will be available directly in OpenAI’s products, including ChatGPT. When users search for topics covered by The Atlantic, the AI will provide attribution and a link back to the full article on the magazine's website.
Beyond content sharing, the partnership also involves a collaborative effort to shape the future of news consumption in the AI era. The Atlantic's product team will have "privileged access" to OpenAI's technology, allowing them to provide feedback and share use cases to improve news experiences within ChatGPT and other products.
To further explore the potential of AI in journalism, The Atlantic is developing an experimental microsite called Atlantic Labs. This platform will serve as a testing ground for incorporating OpenAI's technology and other emerging tools into the development of innovative products and features designed to better serve readers.
The Atlantic's CEO, Nicholas Thompson, expressed enthusiasm for the partnership, stating, "We believe that people searching with AI models will be one of the fundamental ways that people navigate the web in the future. We're delighted to partner with OpenAI, to make The Atlantic's reporting and stories more discoverable to their millions of users, and to have a voice in shaping how news is surfaced on their platforms."
Nicholas Thompson
Brad Lightcap, OpenAI's COO, echoed this sentiment, saying, "Enabling access to The Atlantic's reporting in our products will allow users to more deeply interact with thought-provoking news. We are dedicated to supporting high-quality journalism and the publishing ecosystem."
This partnership comes at a time when The Atlantic is experiencing significant growth and recognition. The magazine recently surpassed 1 million subscriptions, reached profitability, and has been awarded numerous prestigious honors, including the top prize of General Excellence at the National Magazine Awards for three consecutive years and its first Pulitzer Prizes in 2021, 2022, and 2023.
The deal follows similar agreements between OpenAI and media giants such as News Corp, the Financial Times, and Axel Springer. These partnerships have sparked debates about the potential benefits and challenges of integrating AI into traditional media. While they offer exciting opportunities for innovation, there are concerns about centralized information control and the impact on smaller publishers.
As AI continues to transform the way people consume and interact with news, collaborations like the one between The Atlantic and OpenAI will play a crucial role in ensuring that high-quality journalism remains accessible and relevant in the digital age.