Mx3 AI took place in London in December 2023, bringing together some of the most prominent and influential names working with AI in media. A number of key themes emerged, but none greater than the need to experiment with AI immediately – as the following extract makes clear. P.S. The full report can be downloaded here.
Taking place at Colours Hoxton, Mx3 AI featured a diverse agenda covering topics from the latest AI innovations, governance and ethics, as well as practical implementation strategies. It also provided a unique platform for knowledge exchange with some of the leading executives involved in artificial intelligence within media.
One of the biggest themes to emerge, however, was the need for publishers of all sizes to experiment with AI immediately. HBM Advisory’s Alan Hunter, who was previously Head of Digital at The Times and Sunday Times, summed up the threat presciently, “There will be a new generation of publishers. It is urgent and very important to take action this day.”
Search accounts for a third of traffic, and a lot of subscriptions, and that will radically reduce. There are 450 bot-only sites replacing a lot of basic journalism…but now we can focus on the value-added journalism, doubling down on specialist content.
Alan Hunter, Co-Founder, HBM Advisory
In a keynote presentation, Roxanne Fisher, Director of Digital Content Strategy at Immediate Media, outlined how the media company was experimenting and leveraging AI, “We set up an in-company community practice, a centralized learning hub, and an AI conference in July 203. As part of this we set up submissions for in-company projects.”
She continued, “27 projects were selected which included every department. This involved 300 people.”
For projects not selected, Immediate Media set up, “Creative AI sessions for people not directly involved.” The goal? “We want everyone to be upskilled in AI, not just the tech teams.”
Fisher concluded, “Staff must have permission to experiment, but we must always remember that AI tools are about enhancing skills and outputs – the output needs to be governed by a human. The biggest win with AI will be enhancing what you’re already doing.”
William Reed’s John Barnes described how his B2B media company was experimenting with AI. In a conversation with Chris Sutcliffe, News Editor at Marketing Week and Co-Host of Media Voices, he said, “We have a ‘Waddle In’ team which is experimenting with AI. It’s not about being an expert, it’s a perspective, a questioning, an interest.”
He continued, “We have 60 in our Waddle In team and if the ideas look good, we will dip into our pockets and invest in it. We are democratic in our Waddle In team, but we do steer it lightly and in the event we commercialise it, we issue press releases so people know what the benefits are.”
“On our inhouse intranet we let our people know what is happening every quarter as well as host a meet and greet every quarter in the staff canteen – we want to make it friendly and engaging and inspire staff, and this is working.”
Charlie Beckett, Director, The JournalismAI Project, Polis, The London School of Economics and Political Science, said, “The best organizations I have worked with have an executive in charge of looking at AI, creating discussions internally, networking, drawing up guidelines, etc.”
In the final session of the day, Aliya Itzkowitz, Manager at FT Strategies, implored publishers to start experimenting immediately, saying, “We are seeing multiple AI innovations, and whilst the majority involves the repackaging of content and personalization, there are many work efficiencies that AI can assist with. One publisher we know has been looking at AI for budgeting, another has been looking at recreating content so it’s easier for younger people to digest.”
She ended by saying, “AI could be an opportunity tsunami…In conclusion….just do it!”
Download the Mx3 AI Event Report: Unveiling the Future of Artificial Intelligence in Media
A Special Thank You:
We extend our gratitude to our event sponsors and media partners, without whom Mx3 AI would not have been possible. Media partner: Media Voices. Sponsors: FT Strategies, Miso, Zuora, Sub(x), Labrador CMS, InsurAds.
