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A new AI chat tool promises answers from verified outlets and shared revenue with publishers, but user adoption and trust remain uncertain.
As informed by CNN
AI-powered chatbots are rapidly becoming one of the ways people search for news. But their reliability depends on the sources, and they can spread misinformation or manipulative content.
Problems are also tied to the media business model: AI platform makers often use publishers’ materials without adequate compensation to authors. In response, NewsGuard, a startup that rates source reliability, proposed a solution that could address several tasks at once.
On Tuesday the company unveiled NewsGuard AI – a tool that collects and aggregates data exclusively from sources that have previously been deemed reliable. The bot’s responses include quotes and explicit citations to publications.
A particular point of interest for publishers is the promised revenue split: NewsGuard AI claims to be “the only chatbot that compensates every publisher for their content” on a 50/50 model.
NewsGuard expects to earn revenue from users who are willing to pay $6 per month for access.
Initial access is free, and NewsGuard is bringing in marketing partners, including magazines and independent bookstores, to boost usage.
Imagine how existing AI chatbots operate, and NewsGuard AI operates in the opposite way in every respect.
– Steven Brill
In a Zoom interview, Brill and co-founder Gordon Crovitz explained that NewsGuard uses verified sources as its database and studies into the weaknesses of products like ChatGPT.
NewsGuard publishes a series of studies showing that popular chatbots are prone to spreading false claims and falling under the influence of propaganda.
The idea that our leading AI models are so vulnerable to foreign disinformation operations is troubling. And they have not taken steps to cleanse themselves of this.
– Gordon Crovitz
NewsGuard AI should resemble specialized tools in health care and law, but be labeled as a broadly accessible general-audience service that values accuracy.
During a pre-launch demonstration, NewsGuard’s Chief Operating Officer Matt Skibinski showed how the chatbot debunked medical misinformation and directed the user to primary sources.
NewsGuard’s website describes the new product as “your own fact-checker,” adding that it uses a catalog that makes it easier to debunk more than 64,000 false statements.
However convincing users to try the service could be challenging in a world where many similar interfaces already exist.
Few things will matter more in the near future than the ability of humans to figure out what’s real, what’s false, and what’s confabulated nonsense.
– Nicholas Thompson, The Atlantic
In partnership with The Atlantic, one of the best-known U.S. publications, they aim to demonstrate the potential of the new solution. Thompson noted that in an era of information races, the ability to distinguish reality from falsity and unfounded fabrication matters most.
This is particularly true when it comes to news, and that’s why I love that NewsGuard is launching an AI news product, built on verified sources, clear citations, and a compensation model for publishers. We’re proud to partner on this important issue and approach.
– Nicholas Thompson, The Atlantic
The compensation model is sparking debate, as large media companies take a two-pronged route – lodging copyright infringement lawsuits or signing licensing deals with AI developers.
The stakes are really, really high here.
– Meredith Kopit Levien, The New York Times Co.
CNN has also filed a suit against Perplexity, urging sensible licensing agreements and stating that “there is no free option” for operators of AI models that build on news.
Facts are not subject to copyright.
– Perplexity
Brill emphasized in a Zoom interview that the main idea is partnerships with publishers, not lawsuits. The company notified the media about its approach in advance, and only two sources opted out.
According to Crovitz, other sources will be paid depending on how often their journalism is cited.
Requests often include links to multiple sources; NewsGuard AI’s database also includes thousands of government sites and other verified resources.
NewsGuard is not storing or training on publisher content or peering behind paywalls: We’re simply using what they have made publicly available.
– NewsGuard
According to Reuters Institute, about 10% of consumers use AI chatbots for news weekly, up from last year’s level.
AI is not simply another route to headlines. While some use it to access the latest news, many are using it to interrogate, summarize, and evaluate information, pointing to a more expansive role that combines access with interpretation.
– Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism
Despite interest in combining access with fact-checking, NewsGuard AI’s path to a broad audience may be slow due to competition from existing tools and the need for users to trust sources.
Overall, analysts expect that artificial intelligence will be not just a channel to headlines, but a tool that requires transparency and a responsible monetization model for publishers.
Partnerships with publishers and financial mechanisms fuel the discussion about the future of monetizing content in the AI era. Today, the market seeks a balance between access to information and respect for journalists’ work.
NewsGuard AI aims to combine accuracy with open access and fair compensation for authors. Whether the project can persuade audiences and change the model of interaction between technology and media remains to be seen.
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