Microsoft partners with Semafor to offer breaking news using artificial intelligence | Communications and Media

Technology giant Microsoft announced this Monday a series of agreements with news organizations to introduce generative artificial intelligence tools into content production. Among the various collaborations, the alliance with the Semafor platform stands out, creating a global source of breaking news, which it calls Signals, in which journalists use tools from Microsoft and its subsidiary Open AI, the firm that created the famous ChatGPT. “Our goal is to find ways to support journalists, not replace them,” Microsoft says.

“Signals is responding to the profound and ongoing changes in digital media and the news moment in the post-social media era, as well as the risks and opportunities associated with artificial intelligence,” Semaphore said in introducing the new product. Semafor Signals appears to take information from various media as sources and summarizes its contents into bite-sized publications. For example, this Monday he broadcasts news reports with links to sources such as The Times, The Washington Post, Der Spiegel, CBS News And financial times, among many others. Many of these media are paid, while Semafor Signals offers this content for free.

Microsoft’s agreements with various media outlets and organizations come as the company, along with OpenAI, faces a lawsuit filed The newspaper “New York Times for unauthorized use of its content for teaching artificial intelligence technologies.

“Microsoft is partnering with news organizations to implement generative artificial intelligence. In a year when billions of people will vote in democratic elections around the world, journalism is critical to creating healthy news ecosystems and our mission, in partnership with the sector, is to ensure newsrooms can innovate to deliver services this year and in the future. future,” the Satya Nadella-led company said in announcing the collaboration.

The technology giant ensures that through its alliances, it helps various organizations define and improve procedures and policies for the responsible use of artificial intelligence in news gathering and business practices. His idea, he says, is to help “teach a new generation of reporters how to best use AI and identify ways AI can help create effective business practices and build sustainable newsrooms for future generations.”

Various agreements

Agreements are of different natures. In Semaphore’s case, this will make it easier to access trusted local, national and global sources and translate their content. For its part, the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University in New York (CUNY) will invite seasoned journalists to a free program to explore ways to incorporate generative artificial intelligence into their work and their newsrooms in a hybrid and highly interactive three-month program. long. The AI ​​Journalism Lab will be led by Nikita Roy, a data scientist, businesswoman and presenter. podcast

Newsroom Robots, dedicated to the use of artificial intelligence in journalism.

Microsoft also reached an agreement with the Online News Association (ONA), which launched a program to help journalists and newsroom managers navigate the changing artificial intelligence ecosystem; GroundTruth, which places local journalists in newsrooms around the world; and Nota, a startup that brings high-quality artificial intelligence tools to newsrooms to improve their work, which has now grown to more than 100 newsrooms with support from Microsoft. Nota will soon launch a new tool called Proof, which will give journalists and editors tips on how to better reach audiences with their content through readability, SEO analysis, links and other features.

Each of these organizations will have access to Microsoft experts, technology and support throughout this year and are committed to sharing the results of their projects with the industry. “By working directly with newsrooms, universities, journalists and industry groups, we will help these organizations use AI to grow their audiences, streamline time-consuming newsroom tasks, and create sustainable business operations. “Our goal is to support thriving and resilient newsrooms with the technology they need to perform the important function of informing the world,” the company says.

The use of artificial intelligence is both an opportunity and a threat for traditional newsrooms. Microsoft is trying to reassure people about its risks while defending journalism and journalists, although one possibility is that much of the content that used to be created by editors will now be created using artificial intelligence tools.

“To remain competitive, local, national and global news organizations depend on the ability to responsibly innovate using new technologies. The survival of fact-based news is inextricably linked to healthy democracies, thriving communities and civic engagement,” the company says, noting that journalism is essential to combating disinformation and threats to democracy.

“At the center of all these obligations are the journalists themselves. There are no healthy news organizations without journalists who know their communities and their issues, have deep relationships with leaders in government and public life, and know how to reach their communities. “This work is difficult, and our goal is to find ways to support journalists in this mission, not replace them,” he concludes.