Welcome to The Upgrade

Welcome to 2023’s last installment of my weekly newsletter, which focuses on the intersection of AI, media, and storytelling. A special welcome to my new readers from Harvard, Epic Games, Media Collateral, and many other top organizations — you’re in good company!

In today’s issue:

• The Week’s Top AI Stories 📰

• 🎧 My Podcast Interview on The Subtle Art of Not Yelling

• Looking ahead to 2024: Media Experts Reflect on AI 🧐

• 🎓 Sign up for January Classes! 💻

The Week’s Top AI Stories

Top AI Headlines

• The Times Sues OpenAI and Microsoft Over A.I. Use of Copyrighted Work — The New York Times

• Apple’s iPhone Design Chief Enlisted by Jony Ive, Sam Altman to Work on AI Devices — Bloomberg News

• AI ‘hurts ability to keep democracy alive’ — BBC (Video)

• Michael Cohen Used Artificial Intelligence in Feeding Lawyer Bogus Cases — The New York Times

Regulation & Policy

• AI’s Rise Means Change Will Happen Even Faster — Bloomberg (Opinion)

• Privacy Violation Claims Will Test AI and Web-Based Technologies — Bloomberg Law (Opinion)

• OpenAI Hires Akin Gump to Lobby in DC on ‘Hard’ Regulation Task — Bloomberg Law

Ethics & Safety

• Microsoft says its AI is safe. So why does it keep slashing people’s throats? — The Washington Post (Opinion)

• A.I. Can Make Art That Feels Human. Whose Fault Is That? — The New York Times (Opinion)

• Xbox Slammed For AI-Generated Art Promoting Indie Games — Kotaku

Legal & Copyright

• Media and tech war over generative AI reaches new level — The Financial Times (Opinion)

• NYT vs. Microsoft: AI copyright suit will be 'complex'

  — Yahoo Finance (Video)

In the Workplace

• The AI revolution’s first year: has anything changed? — The Financial Times

• How one of the world’s oldest newspapers is using AI to reinvent journalism — The Guardian

• Panic and possibility: What workers learned about AI in 2023 — BBC

• Workers wrested a seat at the table on AI this year. Will it be enough? — NBC

🎧 My Interview: The Subtle Art of Not Yelling

Looking Ahead: AI + Media in 2024

As the year comes to an end, I posed the following question to a variety of media experts:

As we move into 2024 and look to the future, in what specific ways do you foresee AI evolving and impacting your part of the media landscape?

Their responses are below. Some have been edited for clarity and brevity.

As we progress into 2024, AI promises to further dissolve the boundaries between tech and art, compelling creatives to continually adapt and innovate. The most profound disruption lies in AI's capacity to democratize creativity, extending across audio, video, 3D, AI, XR, and beyond. This universal creative access necessitates that professionals in the creative domain persistently explore and embrace AI tools to remain at the forefront of an ever-evolving artistic landscape.

— Kris Krüg, CEO of MØTLEYKRÜG Media & FATALE Festival

AI is already capable of boosting both work efficiency and quality, with its capabilities poised for rapid advancement in the next year. In 2024, marketers not adopting AI may face obsolescence, with foundational AI skills becoming as crucial for all employees as email and Google search skills today. I strongly advise all marketers to begin to incorporate AI into their workflows to build essential skills and stay relevant. For companies, I recommend investing in AI skill-building training for your marketing teams in 2024, via my services or other avenues, to maintain competitiveness and help retain your star employees.

— Nicole Leffer, CMO AI Advisor

The idea of training AI on a publication's archives feels just around the corner. That will be a key step toward true "reporter copilots." Social media traffic is dropping across the industry, which suggests social promotion of content is destined to be nearly 100% automated soon. I do wonder how interns will learn some key skills as more and more of the peripheral tasks around story creation will fall to AI.

— Pete Pachal, Founder of Media Copilot

The pace of technological change, particularly with AI, is rapid and often intimidating. This fear is prevalent in newsrooms, big or small. People worry about how these advancements will impact their roles. It's essential to address these fears directly, providing clear explanations of the process and intentions behind these changes.

Looking ahead to 2024, AI's evolution in the media landscape is poised to be significant. One key area is content creation, where AI can assist in generating news stories, aiding in data analysis and even potentially in investigative journalism. Another aspect is personalization, where AI can tailor content to individual preferences, enhancing user engagement. However, this technological advancement also presents challenges, such as ensuring ethical standards and maintaining journalistic integrity. Our focus should be on leveraging AI to augment our capabilities, not replace them, and continuously addressing the concerns it raises in our rapidly evolving field.

— Ryan Restivo, Founder of YESEO

2023 saw AI making high-quality content creation easier than ever. In 2024, we can focus on how to monetize this content. Branding and audience are important, but leveraging this content for revenue is mission-critical.

— Stacie Chan, Cofounder & Chief Business Officer of Vidiofy.ai

I see issues surrounding transparency and ethical disclosure of how these tools are used being a big part of the conversation when it comes to AI-assisted journalism and media.

— Joe Amditis, Assistant Director of Products and Events, Center for Cooperative Media

As journalists, we often frame our evaluation of a new technology in terms of how it will impact our day-to-day. From that perspective AI is seen as both an aid (brainstorming headline ideas, summarizing transcripts etc) and a threat (the displacement of jobs.) While that debate is worth our attention, the larger societal impact is a larger threat: that the scale of content AI can generate at little/no cost might simply overwhelm our information infrastructures and bury fact underneath a mountain of falsehood. That is not a problem of technology, but unscrupulous publishers and big tech intermediaries (Google, Facebook and the like) who are unprepared to mitigate these harms.

— Damon Kiesow, Knight Chair in Journalism Innovation at the Missouri School of Journalism

We've seen some major mishandling of AI by Sports Illustrated, Gannett and other large publications in 2023. My hope is that we'll move away from having AI try to write our stories for us and rather use it as a tool to augment our work. Think of it as spellcheck and grammar check, but for everything. How can it make me more efficient? What can I automate and what shouldn't I automate? Those are the critical issues we're facing. I launched the JournalistsToolbox.ai website, newsletter and training network to address these needs. I've done newsroom trainings on tech tools for years, but it has never been as important as now.

— Mike Reilley, Founder, Journalist’s Toolbox

AI's role in the media landscape, particularly in news verification and combating misinformation, is becoming increasingly crucial. AI tools are already showing promise in fact-checking and identifying false information, and this trend is expected to continue and evolve in the coming years. This advancement is exciting, as it aligns with the core journalistic goal of providing accurate and reliable information to the public.

Beyond just fact-checking, AI's potential to enhance engagement with audiences is another area of interest. By leveraging AI, we can create more authentic connections between journalists and their communities. This technology can bridge the gap, making journalism more interactive and responsive. For example, AI-driven chatbots can directly answer reader queries, creating a more dynamic and participatory news experience.

— Emily Lytle, Innovation in Focus Editor at Reynold Journalism Institute, University of Missouri

Entering 2024, the media landscape is set to be significantly reshaped by AI. If 2022 was mostly copy automations, and 2023 was visual, then 2024 is clearly going to be the real beginnings of AI video. This evolution, as seen with our Augie platform, brings opportunities for wider content creation, deeper audience engagement and a sea-change in the "who has access" to video tools.

We also see the year ahead to have a higher focus on the balance of technological proficiency, creative voices and insights, and most importantly - ethics. It's crucial to understand how to leverage AI tools, like Augie and VideoMyListing, to augment human creativity, not replace it. Continuous learning and ethical AI use will be key in adapting to these rapid advancements.

— Jeremy Toeman, Cofounder and CEO, Aug X Labs

🎓 Sign up for January Classes! 💻

The Executive’s Guide to AI + Media, led by industry pioneers and thought leaders, offers exclusive insights equipping leaders with the knowledge to navigate complex legal environments, leverage AI for competitive advantage, and optimize their digital strategy. The live 90-minute sessions will take place on Thursdays, starting January 11th, at 7pm ET / 4pm PT. Prepare your organization to get ahead!⚡️

AI Fundamentals for Professional Communicators and Marketers covers the essentials of Generative AI for media and marketing professionals with novice and beginner-level experience with AI tools. The live 90-minute sessions will take place on Wednesdays, starting January 17th, at 7pm ET / 4pm PT. Start 2024 by leveling up in AI!⚡️

Don’t be shy—hit reply if you have thoughts or feedback. I’d love to connect with you!

Until next week,

Peter

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