Topline
BuzzFeed’s stock surged to a seven-month high Thursday as the online media company vowed to invest heavily in artificial intelligence-driven content, with the rally from the once left-for-dead stock coming as interest in the viral AI chatbot ChatGPT spreads.
Buzzfeed CEO Jonah Peretti poses in Times Square in December 2021.
Key Facts
CEO Jonah Peretti said he hopes to transform his company into the “premier platform for AI-powered content” in an email to staff first reported by the Wall Street Journal and seen by Forbes.
Shares of BuzzFeed rose as much as 203% to $2.88 Thursday, after the Journal reported on the company’s AI commitment and a multi-million dollar deal to make content for Facebook parent Meta, before settling into a 120% gain to $2.09.
The stock is still down nearly 80% from its December 2021 debut on Nasdaq despite hitting its highest level since June 7, 2022 Thursday.
BuzzFeed will begin rolling out the AI-powered media in February, according to Peretti, who wrote it will improve the site’s trademark quizzes and personalize content.
A person familiar with the matter confirmed to Forbes that BuzzFeed will utilize technology from OpenAI, the Microsoft-backed firm behind ChatGPT, as part of the initiative.
Key Background
BuzzFeed went public 13 months ago via a reverse merger with a special purpose acquisition company at the tail end of the “SPAC” craze. The entertainment company also owns Huffington Post and Complex, both acquired in 2021. ChatGPT, which launched to the public in November 2022, immediately exploded in popularity and landed OpenAI a multibillion-dollar investment from Microsoft on Monday.
Crucial Quote
“If the past 15 years of the internet have been defined by algorithmic feeds that curate and recommend content, the next 15 years will be defined by AI and data helping create, personalize, and animate the content itself,” Peretti wrote Thursday.
Big Number
$156 million. That’s how much market capitalization BuzzFeed gained Thursday, reaching a valuation of $291 million. The company, valued at $1.5 billion when it first announced its plans to go public in June 2021, had a market cap below $100 million last month.
Further Reading
ChatGPT Parent Open AI Gets ‘Game Changing’ Multibillion-Dollar Boost From Microsoft (Forbes)
BuzzFeed to Use ChatGPT Creator OpenAI to Help Create Quizzes and Other Content (Wall Street Journal)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2023/01/26/buzzfeed-shares-shoot-up-nearly-200-as-company-goes-all-in-on-chatgpt-craze/