It just happened It’s been a few months since OpenAI’s ChatGPT exploded into the public consciousness, and it feels like our newsfeeds will never be the same.
How about headlines or Twitter threads about AI startups getting big funding? must be. If you’re using ChatGPT, the AI news cycle is well and truly here. Sorry, web3, you had your 15 minutes of fame.
From universal outrage over the FTX fiasco to ChatGPT setting off the red alert at Google HQ, there’s been a shocking shift even in the tech news cycle. Crypto publication Decrypt suggests that the focus hasn’t just shifted to the media: JPMorgan’s E-Trading Edit report indicates that institutional traders are also taking a cautious look at AI as blockchain begins to lose its appeal.
In this environment, it’s all too tempting for tech startups to slap the words “AI” and “machine learning” wherever they can’t be hit fast enough and call a given announcement or market insight newsworthy.
Actually, that might not be such a bad idea. In fact, it is a great opportunity to miss.
If AI-enabled coverage can find a new unknown brand in targeted publications today, it can help get that brand’s platform in front of investors tomorrow.
Clearly, AI stories will have a relatively easy time attracting the attention of journalists in this climate. That said, the need to identify messaging in the AI vertical is growing exponentially with the flow of similar tones entering reporters’ inboxes.
The question is whether tech startups should shift their PR message to AI-related topics. Such an approach is truly a given for AI-focused startups: ChatGPT has paved the way and can now reap the rewards of the industry. But for companies where AI was already No. 4 on the list of data points, machine learning capabilities should be integrated into the main hook of the ad.
But what if we’re not an AI startup?
Startups with little to do with AI fear accusations of “jumping the beast” if they enter the conversation. You might think that startups should stay away from the topic unless they’re a full-fledged AI organization. The logic is that their PR messages stick to their core technology or brand mission and prioritize the long-term benefits of a clear positioning.
