The company responsible for USA Today and 220 other publications has launched a new tool named DeeperDive today. This tool, which operates similar to a chatbot, is designed to engage in conversations with readers, provide summaries of key insights from its journalism, and recommend fresh content from its various platforms. Mike Reed, the CEO of Gannett and the USA Today Network, expressed during the WIRED AI Power Summit in New York that visitors now have access to an AI-based answer engine on their platform. This tool aims to cater to readers’ queries effectively and efficiently. Reed highlighted the impact of Google’s AI Overview feature on publishers within the industry, emphasizing potential risks associated with content distribution models heavily reliant on SEO optimization. Gannett, like other publishers, has engaged in partnerships with AI companies such as Amazon and Perplexity to license its content while actively preventing web scrapers from extracting their material. DeeperDive is viewed as a strategic move by Gannett to leverage generative artificial intelligence technology in order to enhance reader engagement. The tool replaces traditional search boxes by suggesting questions for readers and providing concise answers along with relevant stories from the USA Today network. It is crucial for DeeperDive to deliver factually accurate information sourced only from legitimate journalism rather than opinion pieces. Reed anticipates that this tool will offer valuable insights into readers’ preferences, potentially benefiting revenue generation in the process. Developed by Taboola, DeeperDive utilizes data collected from a vast network of over 11,000 publishers and more than 600 million daily readers. The tool ensures accuracy by citing sources at the sentence level and cross-verifying information from multiple sources before generating responses. Reed disclosed his interest in exploring agentic tools for readers’ shopping decisions in collaboration with Taboola during the event. This move aligns with their goal of leveraging audience intent to purchase effectively.