Matthew Prince Urges AI Firms to Compensate for Their Misdeeds

I have evidence that we’re onto something big: we’ve observed several content deals, with Reddit securing the most lucrative one by far. Their public filings reveal they earned nearly $140 million last year from Google and OpenAI.

Hmm.

In comparison, The New York Times struck a similar deal worth around $20 million. This means Reddit received seven times more than The New York Times. Why is that? Perhaps it’s a bit outrageous …

I think I’m seeing the direction you’re headed, and I’m in agreement, but [$140 million versus $20 million is] a stark contrast.

Absolutely. Just 20 minutes ago, we both seemed to acknowledge our nostalgia for the quirky aspects of the internet …

Oh, I adore Reddit.

… and Reddit epitomizes that charm. The New York Times is fantastic, but if you have data from The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, or The Boston Globe, what real distinction is there? The core facts remain consistent among them, while Reddit offers unique content. Hence, we already have some indicators that the business model of the AI-driven web will favor Reddits over the more traditional players.

Okay. I need to determine what niche I’m going to fill.

One of the scariest meetings I’ve recently experienced was over coffee with Anna Wintour. My wife urged me to wear a suit, and I was like, “I don’t own any.”

Hold on. This is crucial. What did you wear, Matthew?

It was sweltering in New York, a hundred degrees with high humidity. The only suit I had was a lighter blue fall suit, which was relatively heavy. So, I decided to wear it.

Oh dear.

Anna likely rolled her eyes, and I was just a sweaty mess. All in all, it turned out to be a rather embarrassing meeting.

That’s quite the image. I’m sure she thought it was fantastic. The thing about my boss is that she’s genuinely very nice. So there’s that.

She was incredibly kind and gave thoughtful insights about the whole content and media landscape. I truly valued the chance to exchange ideas with her.

That’s really amusing.

Even though my fashion sense is rather …

Trust me, mine isn’t any better. I understand completely.

Before we wrap up, I’d like to play a little game we devised. It’s called Control, Alt, Delete. Which piece of tech would you wish to control? Which would you alter, and what would you eliminate entirely from existence?

For delete, I would likely choose TikTok. It seems to offer little value and could be quite harmful.

As for control, I feel fortunate in my role at Cloudflare, so I want significant influence in determining the next web business model. While I don’t necessarily wish to dominate it, I’d like to ensure we’re rewarding innovation that fills gaps.

Finally, for alt: I’m still striving for a home automation system that truly excels. I recently returned to my Austin home to find the light switches malfunctioning and the TV unresponsive. I wish for a smarter smart home.

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