Felix M. Simon

Overall, looks like we are seeing three responses broadly: collaboration, confrontation and co-existence (to cite @rasmuskleis.bsky.social & @sarahsoutlook.bsky.social’s "The Power of Platforms"), although it would be interesting to map (quantitatively) which one is currently winning out.

Of course, Disney might be in a better bargaining position than many publishers because they have something (characters) that lots of people actually want, which isn't always the case for other content, including news.

Disney Agrees to Bring Its Characters to OpenAI’s Sora Videos The deal is a watershed for Hollywood, which has been trying to sort through the possible harms and upsides of generative artificial intelligence.

These deals remind me of @halhod.bsky.social’s argument three years ago that he should expect a concord between copyright holders and AI developers. Well, we see the signs of this in the news, but also in the media and entertainment sector as here with Disney and OpenAI.

buff.ly/9HKnJzz

This made me laugh out loud

Who could’ve known?

Fab idea, looking forward to your results

RISJ Newsletter. 9 December 2025 How different is AI prose | Many young people use GenAI for information | Dozens of readings on AI and the future of news

Find the full newsletter here, with lots of other nuggets, articles and studies on AI that Marina and I have been reading: buff.ly/NJduA43

As you can see in the new chart for the newsletter when I broke this down by age a striking 40% of those aged 18-24 say they have used AI for getting information in the last week, versus just 15% of those 55 and older. I’d be surprised if this figure hadn’t risen further by this time next year.

In our study from earlier this summer we found that 24% across all age groups said they have used an AI system for getting information in the last week (of those who had used one).

In our lastest AI newsletter, led by @marinaadami.bsky.social , I took a closer look at how younger people across countries use generative AI for information.

My parent’s local A&E doesn’t have pillows, time, beds, capacity. The GP doesn’t have emergency appointments for emergencies, services with capacity to refer people to.

Caring like this about nomenclature and pronouns seems to me a luxury pursuit, frankly.

Thanks man! Had too many ppl tell me recently “ah once the bubbles pops” and that energy had to go somewhere

"Even if we see a market correction, the technology will not magically disappear." www.niemanlab.org/2025/12/the-... by @felixsimon.bsky.social

My Nieman Lab prediction for 2026: The AI bubble may pop but people’s use of AI for information won’t and it's better if we start taking this seriously.

That’s so uncanny 😅

(Also apologies for my big face staring at you from the thumbnail)

The AI bubble may pop. People’s use of AI for information won’t. "Despite the sometimes barely concealed vitriol poured out by some pundits over AI as information gateways, public AI adoption and attitudes paint a different picture."

A big thank you to @niemanlab.org, @joshuabenton.com and team for letting me write this – and I look forward to the wealth of other predictions over the coming weeks.

buff.ly/KPdaO1T

Which brings me to the final point: News media can’t rely on a bubble burst to solve their problems. Competition for attention and advertising will intensify regardless. To cite the final paragraph:

Our survey data also shows more people expect positive than negative impacts from AI integration in search and social media.

Second, public adoption of those systems for "information" is strong and growing. People around the world as we found in our work increasingly use AI for information discovery and find it useful (and somewhat trustworthy) for learning and navigating daily life.

So expect them and Microsoft to continue offering AI features that already make a different to people's lives.

First, not all AI companies are equally vulnerable if and when a market correction comes. Some might topple (or more likely will get bought up), but tech giants like Google have the financial resources, infrastructure, and existing user bases to weather a market correction.

…, but also other sectors in the business of communication information) because the underlying technology, user adoption, and major tech companies' capabilities won't disappear, even if the bubbly waters boil over.

In a nutshell my prediction isn't even particularly wild (I am saying AGI is around the corner). AI technology will continue to reshape information access (and pose ongoing challenges for news media…

My Nieman Lab prediction for 2026: The AI bubble may pop but people’s use of AI for information won’t and it's better if we start taking this seriously.

AI Deals and Lawsuits | Platforms and Publishers A tracker monitoring developments between news publishers and AI companies—including lawsuits, deals, and grants—based on publicly available information.

Today the @towcenter.bsky.social is releasing a tracker (built by my talented colleague @aisvarya17.bsky.social) that monitors developments between news publishers and AI companies—including lawsuits, deals, and grants—based on publicly available information. tow.cjr.org/ai-deals-law...

AI Transcription and Translation in Journalism Working Group Briefing #2: November 2025

… and cultural context (so e.g. ‘street food’ translated as ‘food of the road’), and bias can creep in, too.

A good overview for anyone who wants a better understanding of the pros and cons and what can be – and should be – done to address them.

Source: buff.ly/vzXOZQ8

Then there are issues depending on the accent and dialect of speakers, let alone when it comes sign language. Nuance can get lost as AI translation still often focuses on literal (referential) meaning while missing social functions (the indexical meaning)…

At the same time, we still see inequalities in the performance of systems based on the language spoken. Most tools are optimised for high-resource languages, primarily English, with significant performance gaps for low-resource languages (those with less available online textual data).

For example the Houston Chronicle uses AI to summarise local public government meetings, A European Perspective at the EBU is enabling content exchange across 10 broadcasters, and Dubawa uses AI to help fact-check radio broadcasts in Ghana and Nigeria