Google Is Paying Publishers to Test an Unreleased Gen AI Platform : what does this mean for SEO ?

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Google is working on an AI writer for small and medium media publishers

In a surprising turn of events, Google has been secretly developing an AI-based writer for media websites and publishers.

This news comes as a shock, considering the company's previous lack of enthusiasm for AI-generated content. So, what's the deal with this mysterious AI writer?

What do SEOs know so far ?

The AI writer is currently available exclusively to independent publishers as part of a beta launch. Participants in the beta test will receive a monthly stipend, reportedly a five-figure sum, for a duration of 12 months. In return, they're required to use the tool to produce and publish three articles per day, one newsletter per week, and one marketing campaign per month.

Interestingly, Google has opted to team up with medium and small publishers for this beta test, rather than larger ones. The company stated, "We're in the early stages of exploring ideas to potentially provide AI-enabled tools to help journalists with their work, especially for smaller publishers."

What are SEOs thinking ?

SEOs have mixed feelings about the initiative due to several concerns:

  • The tool scrapes and crawls content from other media publishers without their consent.
  • Publishers enrolled in the beta test are notified when other media publishers share a piece, making it easier to copy content.
  • The tool uses color codes to indicate the level of copying: yellow for text taken almost verbatim from the source material, blue for moderately accurate text, and red for the least accurate text based on the original report.
  • The tool can't create original content.

These concerns raise important questions about the ethics and legality of using AI-generated content in journalism. Although AI can certainly assist journalists, it's crucial to ensure that content is original and respects intellectual property rights. As this initiative evolves, it will be fascinating to see how Google addresses these issues and whether AI-generated content becomes more common in the media world.

Want to dive deeper into Google's AI writer? Check out the full article from ADWEEK.