CNN and Google Strike Multiyear Partnership to Embrace Generative AI

CNN and Google have struck a multi-year partnership to help figure out how Google’s generative AI products can help boost engagement with its journalism, becoming the latest news organization to monetize its content to help a tech giant power its AI models.

The deal appears to be in its early stages, as both sides have not revealed exactly how CNN will incorporate Google’s AI efforts to drive audiences toward its journalism. But Sam Felix, the network’s senior vice president of strategic partnerships and business development, said in a statement on Thursday the partnership would unlock “new pathways for audiences to access CNN’s unparalleled journalism while being compensated for the delivery and use of our unique intellectual property in connection with AI products.”

“Google’s innovation with generative AI has changed how people discover information and content, and now those tools will help us explore new ways to discover and engage audiences,” Felix said in a statement.

CNN’s deal comes months after it sued Perplexity AI for copyright infringement after both companies failed to reach a licensing deal, its first legal case against an AI company over the unauthorized use of its journalism. At the time, a CNN spokesperson said the network “actively embraces the opportunities AI creates.”

It also reflects the impact Google’s AI summaries in its search engine have had on news organizations, many of which have highlighted how the responses have eaten into their web traffic. Penske Media Corporation, the parent company of Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Rolling Stone and more, sued Google last year over the decline, though a federal judge dismissed the case earlier this month.

In an email to CNN staffers reviewed by Variety, Felix said the partnership would see CNN articles power Google’s AI responses to users’ news-related queries, with respective stories credited. The agreement will also see the news network work with Google to “collaborate on new AI features, search experiences, tools for our teams and marketing initiatives.”

“This is an important step forward in our broader AI strategy,” Felix wrote. “We’re embracing new technologies and ways for audiences to experience our journalism, while protecting our work and ensuring we’re compensated for, and granting permission for, the use of our intellectual property in AI models and products.”

The deal is also part of Google’s pilot program to incorporate its AI to help boost engagement to news organizations’ websites, a program that has included global outlets such as Der Spiegel, El País, The Guardian, the Times of India, the Washington Examiner and the Washington Post.