Meta Platforms to use Reuters news content in AI chatbot
Meta Platforms announced on Friday that its artificial intelligence chatbot will now be incorporating Reuters content to provide real-time answers to user inquiries about news and current events. This collaboration marks the latest integration of AI technology from a major tech company with a prominent news publisher.
Neither Meta Platforms nor Reuters-parent company Thomson Reuters have disclosed the specific financial terms of this partnership. This deal represents the first news-related agreement for Meta in several years, indicating a significant step for the company. The partnership comes at a crucial time for Meta, as it has faced scrutiny from regulators and publishers regarding misinformation and revenue-sharing disagreements.
Meta AI, the chatbot developed by the company, is accessible across various Meta services, including Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram. It remains unclear whether Meta intends to utilize Reuters content for training its expansive language model, as the social media giant has not provided explicit details regarding this aspect.
In a statement, a Reuters spokesperson confirmed the partnership, stating, "We can confirm that Reuters has partnered with tech providers to license our trusted, fact-based news content to power their AI platforms. The terms of these deals remain confidential." Reuters will be duly compensated for granting access to its journalistic content through a multi-year agreement, as reported by Axios.
Expanding Capabilities
Through this collaboration with Reuters, Meta AI will be able to offer comprehensive responses to news-related queries by providing summaries and directing users to relevant Reuters articles. This strategic alliance reflects a growing trend of AI partnerships between technology companies and news organizations.
Other industry players, such as ChatGPT-maker OpenAI and Perplexity, a startup backed by Jeff Bezos, have also formed similar AI collaborations with news outlets. Reuters previously established a fact-checking partnership with Meta back in 2020, further solidifying their ongoing relationship.
As Meta continues to enhance its AI capabilities through partnerships with established news providers like Reuters, users can expect more seamless and reliable access to timely information across Meta's platforms.
