By Medha Singh and Shreyaa Narayanan
(Reuters) – Shares of BuzzFeed Inc jumped on Thursday on reports of a deal with Meta Platforms Inc and plans to use artificial intelligence to personalize and enhance the digital media firm’s online quizzes and content.
The stock was 19% higher in extended trading, after more than doubling in value earlier in the day as a Wall Street Journal report said it would use ChatGPT creator OpenAI for its content.
Buzzfeed, in an emailed response to Reuters, said “we are not using ChatGPT – we are using OpenAI’s publicly available API (application programming interface).”
Earlier in the day, the stock had jumped 50% on a separate report by the Journal that said Meta was paying BuzzFeed millions of dollars to bring more creators to Facebook and Instagram.
The deal, reached last year, was valued at close to $10 million and BuzzFeed will help generate content for Meta’s platforms and train creators to grow their presence online, the report had said, citing people familiar with the situation.
“In 2023, you’ll see AI inspired content move from an R&D stage to part of our core business, enhancing the quiz experience, informing our brainstorming, and personalizing our content for our audience,” BuzzFeed Chief Executive Jonah Peretti said in memo to employees reviewed by Reuters.
The stock closed at $2.09 after touching a high of $2.45.
Indicating interest from retail traders, BuzzFeed shares were among the top three orders on Fidelity’s platform on Thursday.
Shares of the company, valued at $132 million, have tanked more than 90% to Wednesday’s close since going public in December 2021 through a reverse merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC).
The company said last month it would cut about 12% of its workforce to rein in costs. Its third-quarter net loss had widened to $27 million from $3.6 million a year ago.
