“We support journalism and partner with news organisations,” said Microsoft’s OpenAI in a blog post on January 8, 2024. At that time, OpenAI noted that more than 92 percent of Fortune 500 companies were building on its products, with a goal to support a healthy news ecosystem, be a good partner, and create mutually beneficial opportunities.
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In a post titled “OpenAI and Journalism,” OpenAI mentioned its early partnerships with the Associated Press, Axel Springer, the American Journalism Project, and NYU. OpenAI expressed its belief that training AI models using publicly available internet materials is fair use, but the company also provides an opt-out because it is the right thing to do.
During that time, OpenAI cited its simple opt-out process, which The New York Times adopted in August 2023 to prevent its tools from accessing their sites.
“We look forward to continued collaboration with news organisations, helping elevate their ability to produce quality journalism by realising the transformative potential of AI,” concluded OpenAI in its first journalism post of 2024.
With this, beginning in January 2024, let’s now look at the media and content partnerships OpenAI has announced so far in 2024.
Partnership with Le Monde and Prisa Media
In March, OpenAI announced a partnership with the international news organisations Le Monde and Prisa Media, along with its publications like El Pais, Cinco Dias, As, and El HuffPost, to bring French and Spanish news content to ChatGPT.
OpenAI stated that this partnership will enable ChatGPT users to engage with Le Monde and Prisa Media’s content on recent events, and the content will also contribute to the training of its models.
Brad Lightcap, COO of OpenAI, said, “We’re dedicated to supporting journalism by applying new AI technologies and enhancing opportunities for content creators. In partnership with Le Monde and Prisa Media, our goal is to enable ChatGPT users around the world to connect with the news in new ways that are interactive and insightful.”
Louis Dreyfus, CEO of Le Monde, stated, “At the moment, we are celebrating the 80th anniversary of Le Monde. This partnership with OpenAI allows us to expand our reach and uphold our commitment to providing accurate, verified, and balanced news stories at scale. Collaborating with OpenAI ensures that our authoritative content can be accessed and appreciated by a broader, more diverse audience.”
Carlos Nunez, Chairman and CEO of Prisa Media, added, “Joining forces with OpenAI opens new avenues for us to engage with our audience. Leveraging ChatGPT’s capabilities allows us to present our in-depth, quality journalism in novel ways, reaching individuals who seek credible and independent content. This is a significant step towards the future of news, where technology and human expertise merge to enrich the reader’s experience.”
These partnerships build on our collaborations with the American Journalism Project to support local news initiatives and The Associated Press, which contributes to the training of our models, OpenAI added.
Agreement with The Financial Times
According to OpenAI, the next announcement came on April 29, when the company announced a strategic partnership and licensing agreement with The Financial Times to enhance ChatGPT with attributed content, help improve its models’ usefulness by incorporating FT journalism, and collaborate on developing new AI products and features for FT readers.
In addition, OpenAI announced that the FT became a customer of ChatGPT Enterprise earlier this year, purchasing access for all FT employees to ensure its teams are well-versed in the technology.
“This is an important agreement in several respects,” said FT Group CEO John Ridding. “It recognises the value of our award-winning journalism and will give us early insights into how content is surfaced through AI. We have long been a leader in news media innovation, pioneering the subscription model and engagement technologies, and this partnership will help to keep us at the forefront of developments in how people access and use information.”
Ridding added, “Apart from the benefits to the FT, there are broader implications for the industry. It’s right, of course, that AI platforms pay publishers for the use of their material.”
Brad Lightcap, COO of OpenAI, expressed enthusiasm about the evolving relationship with The Financial Times, stating, “Our partnership and ongoing dialogue with the FT is about finding creative and productive ways for AI to empower news organizations and journalists and enrich the ChatGPT experience with real-time, world-class journalism for millions of people around the world.”
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Agreement with News Corp
Then, in May, OpenAI announced a multi-year agreement to bring News Corp’s news content to OpenAI. Through this partnership, OpenAI has permission to display content from News Corp mastheads in response to user questions and to enhance its products, with the objective of providing people with the ability to make informed choices based on reliable information and news sources.
OpenAI will receive access to current and archived content from News Corp’s major news and information publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, MarketWatch, Investor’s Business Daily, FN, New York Post, The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun, The Australian, news.com.au, The Daily Telegraph, The Courier Mail, The Advertiser, and Herald Sun, among others. The partnership does not include access to content from any of News Corp’s other businesses.
“Our partnership with News Corp is a proud moment for journalism and technology,” said Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI. “We greatly value News Corp’s history as a leader in reporting breaking news around the world and are excited to enhance our users’ access to its high-quality reporting. Together, we are setting the foundation for a future where AI deeply respects, enhances, and upholds the standards of world-class journalism.”
Agreement with Vox Media
Also in May, OpenAI announced a broad-based strategic partnership with Vox Media, whose portfolio includes properties such as Vox, The Verge, Eater, New York Magazine, The Cut, Vulture, and SB Nation. This partnership will help inform ChatGPT’s 100 million users, receiving brand attribution and audience referrals.
Vox Media will also use OpenAI technology, and through this partnership, OpenAI will enhance its technology with Vox Media’s archives, which contain a wealth of reliable and accountable information and journalism, the joint statement said.
“We’re thrilled to partner with OpenAI. This agreement aligns with our goals of leveraging generative AI to innovate for our audiences and customers, protect and grow the value of our work and intellectual property, and boost productivity and discoverability to elevate the talent and creativity of our exceptional journalists and creators,” said Jim Bankoff, co-founder, chair, and CEO of Vox Media.
Content and Product Partnership with The Atlantic
In May, OpenAI announced another strategic content and product partnership with The Atlantic, positioning it as a premium news source within OpenAI. The Atlantic will help shape how news is surfaced and presented in future real-time discovery products, OpenAI stated at that time.
As part of this agreement, The Atlantic and OpenAI are collaborating on product and technology: The Atlantic’s product team will have privileged access to OpenAI technology, provide feedback, and share use cases to shape and improve future news experiences in ChatGPT and other OpenAI products.
“We believe that people searching with AI models will be one of the fundamental ways that people navigate the web in the future,” said Nicholas Thompson, The Atlantic’s CEO. “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.”
Collaboration with WAN-IFRA
On the same day in May, OpenAI announced its collaboration with WAN-IFRA, the World Association of News Publishers, to launch a global accelerator program, Newsroom AI Catalyst, that will assist over 100 news publishers in exploring and integrating AI in their newsrooms.
The Newsroom AI Catalyst accelerator program will assist 128 newsrooms across Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and South Asia. This intensive program combines expert guidance with hands-on experience, equipping newsroom stakeholders with the knowledge and tools needed to drive strategic AI initiatives, OpenAI said.
“News enterprises across the globe have come under pressure from declining advertising and print subscription revenues. The adversity confronting news leaves communities without access to a shared basis of facts and shared values and puts democracy itself at risk. AI technologies have the potential to positively influence the sustainability of news organizations,” said Vincent Peyregne, CEO of WAN-IFRA.
“I am delighted by the support of OpenAI to help the newsrooms through the adoption of AI technologies to provide high-quality journalism, which is the cornerstone of the news business,” he added.
Content Partnership with TIME
In July, OpenAI and TIME announced a multi-year content deal and strategic partnership to bring TIME’s journalism to OpenAI’s products, including ChatGPT. Through this collaboration, OpenAI will gain access to current and historic content from TIME’s extensive archives over the last 101 years to enhance its products and display in response to user inquiries—featuring a citation and link back to the original source on Time.com.
“Throughout our 101-year history, TIME has embraced innovation to ensure that the delivery of our trusted journalism evolves alongside technology,” said TIME Chief Operating Officer Mark Howard. “This partnership with OpenAI advances our mission to expand access to trusted information globally as we continue to embrace innovative new ways of bringing TIME’s journalism to audiences worldwide.”
The partnership will also enable TIME to gain access to OpenAI’s technology to develop new products for its audiences, according to the joint statement at that time.
Partnership with Conde Nast
In August, OpenAI announced a partnership with Conde Nast to display content from brands like Vogue, The New Yorker, Conde Nast Traveler, GQ, Architectural Digest, Vanity Fair, Wired, Bon Appetit, and more within its products, including ChatGPT and the SearchGPT prototype.
By that time, as the company had already introduced the SearchGPT prototype in July, it had started testing new search features that make finding information and reliable content sources faster and more intuitive. SearchGPT offers direct links to news stories, enabling users to explore more in-depth content directly from the source, OpenAI stated.
Partnership with GEDI
In a recent announcement in September, Italian media group GEDI and OpenAI announced a partnership to bring Italian-language content from GEDI’s portfolio of news outlets to OpenAI’s users. Under this partnership, ChatGPT users will have access to attributed quotes, content, and links to GEDI’s publications, including La Repubblica and La Stampa.
The collaboration will incorporate GEDI’s journalism to improve the relevance and accuracy of OpenAI’s products, including ChatGPT and the SearchGPT prototype, for users in Italy, Microsoft-backed OpenAI stated.
John Elkann, Chairman of GEDI, said, “The partnership signed with OpenAI is part of GEDI’s digital transformation journey and recognises its leadership in producing high-quality content within the Italian media landscape. From today, ChatGPT users will be able to rely on articles and in-depth analyses from our publications to obtain top-quality information on a wide range of topics, with a special focus on the Italian context.”
“This agreement also allows GEDI to reach a broader international audience, thanks to the advanced translation capabilities developed by ChatGPT,” John Elkann added.
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, said, “It’s important we work with publishers around the world so everyone can have access to accurate, reliable information in their own language. This partnership acknowledges GEDI’s high-quality journalism and enhances the ChatGPT experience for millions of people in Italy and around the world.”
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Funding and New Credit Facility
Moving to October 03, 2024, in addition to OpenAI securing USD 6.6 billion in new funding, the company established a new USD 4 billion credit facility with JPMorgan Chase, Citi, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Santander, Wells Fargo, SMBC, UBS, and HSBC. This is a revolving credit facility that is undrawn at closing.
This means we now have access to over USD 10 billion in liquidity, providing us the flexibility to invest in new initiatives and operate with full agility as we scale, OpenAI said in a blog post on Thursday.
“This credit facility further strengthens our balance sheet and provides flexibility to seize future growth opportunities,” said Sarah Friar, CFO of OpenAI. “We are proud to have the strongest banks and investors in the world supporting us.”
With the new funding and credit facilities secured in October, OpenAI will continue to invest in research and products that bring AI to the world and expand infrastructure to meet the growing demand for the next phase of growth.
