The most valuable thing AI can do for media isn’t save time
TL;DR
Newsrooms have spent three years using AI mainly to produce the same journalism more cheaply. A Fast Company essay argues that this efficiency focus misses the bigger opportunity. Its framing, Opportunity AI, asks a different question: what could readers get from a newsroom that was never possible before? The piece pushes media companies to judge AI projects by new value for their audience rather than by hours saved.
Nauti's Take
Newsrooms that treat AI purely as a cost cutter leave the bigger opportunity on the table: new formats such as personalized explainers or searchable archives that readers could never get before. The challenge is that these products need money, testing and clean data, while savings show up on the balance sheet right away.
Publishers should reserve a small budget for one genuine reader product before launching the next efficiency project.
Sources