Axel Springer CEO Says Journalists May Lose Their Jobs To AI
The European multinational digital and publishing house, which also doubles as Europe’s largest and most popular publisher, has warned that artificial intelligence AI may displace most journalists from their jobs.
https://twitter.com/BreitbartNews/status/1631031361078284292?s=20
Axel Springer owns some renowned media outlets like Bild, Europe’s most distributed journal, German newspaper Die Welt, and Business Insider and Politico in the U.S.
In a letter to staffers, CEO of Axel Springer, Mathias Döpfner, said the AI rave could have an effect on the European job market. Döpfner urged employees to brace up for a significant reduction within the company and prepare for more disruptions as the situation emerges.
https://twitter.com/guardian/status/1630758244875395074?s=20
According to Breitbart News, the letter contained that there will be significant job reductions in the areas of production, layout, proofreading and administration.
Axel Springer, who has over 18,000 employees around the world, including over 3,000 journalists, seems to be caught in the AI web. Reports from the company state that AI has the capacity to make independent journalism better than it ever was or even replace it entirely.
https://twitter.com/AdamRy_n/status/1630993308439703554?s=20
Breitbart News reported that Döpfner charged the company’s employees to renew their focus on authentic investigative journalism. Likewise, he urged them to go after exclusives and original commentary. He justified his comments by saying AI’s programming would efficiently outdo humans in the aspect of information gathering.
Döpfner told employees that the company’s output must improve by over $106 million in the next three years through an increase in turnover and cost reductions. According to Breitbart News, the company has already tried to meet the $106 million target by cutting an undisclosed number of jobs.
AI has offered smart business solutions across industries. Generative AI like Chat GPT has taken the world by storm through its immense capabilities to execute commands within a short time.
“Understanding this change is essential to a publishing house’s future viability. Only those who create the best original content will survive,” Döpfner said.
While Axel Springer failed to specify how many staffers would be affected, the company assured that “reporters, authors, or specialist editors” won’t be affected. However, Döpfner noted that the company will part ways with some employees in the editorial offices if some profiles no longer fit the required competencies.