New York Times Licenses Content to Amazon for AI Platforms

The New York Times has entered a multi-year licensing agreement with Amazon, allowing the tech giant to use the Times' editorial content—including news articles, NYT Cooking recipes, and sports material from The Athletic—to enhance and train its AI platforms. This marks the first time the Times has permitted its content to be used for generative AI purposes, reflecting the organization's principle that high-quality journalism should be appropriately compensated. The licensing deal follows The Times' 2023 lawsuits against OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement, accusing them of using its paywalled content without permission to train AI models. While financial terms were not disclosed, the agreement enables Amazon to integrate Times content into Alexa and other services, potentially expanding access to quality journalism through AI. The partnership highlights evolving collaborations between media companies and technology platforms, with implications for digital journalism monetization and AI content usage. The Times' CEO, Meredith Kopit Levien, emphasized that the deal aligns with their strategy to safeguard intellectual property rights either through commercial agreements or legal enforcement.