Reddit is gearing up to try something new with AI, and no, this time it’s not about training AI on user generated content. In a recent earnings call, CEO Steve Huffman shared their upcoming plan to roll out AI-generated summaries for search results. The team at Reddit is experimenting with this feature to help users cut through the clutter of content on the platform. Picture this: you’re scrolling through Reddit searching for posts on the Retro Video Game Consoles or the trending meme template and instead of wading through pages of posts, you’re greeted with a quick, digestible summary of your search.
According to Huffman, Reddit is seeing over a billion searches every month, and they’ve recorded a massive 57% increase in user engagement. They’re currently counting 342.3 million active users every week, and this new AI feature could make finding stuff on Reddit even easier. With the sheer volume of content on Reddit, Huffman and his team reckon these AI-generated summaries could be just the tool users need to make sense of it all and find what they’re looking for more efficiently.
How Will AI Summaries Work?
So, how will these AI summaries actually work? Simply put, Reddit’s idea is to offer short, easy-to-read overviews of whatever topic users are searching for. These summaries will appear right at the top of the search results, giving users a quick snapshot of the key posts and discussions around that topic. This should make it a lot simpler to dive into the content that matters most to you. For example, if you’re looking for info on the latest iPhone or US Elections thread, the AI could give you a quick snapshot of relevant posts.
Reddit already has a search function and it is pretty decent in finding relevant posts, however Huffman mentioned that these AI summaries are just another step to make things even better. “We’re always looking for ways to make our platform more user-friendly, and AI can help with that,” he said. With Reddit being home to so much content, these summaries could make the search experience quicker and more engaging.
Reddit Teams Up with Google and OpenAI
Now, here’s where things get interesting. Reddit has partnered with some tech heavyweights like Google and OpenAI to push its AI capabilities. Reddit struck a deal worth around ₹500 crore ($60 million) annually with Google, giving them access to Reddit’s content for training their AI models. OpenAI is also involved, using Reddit’s real-time content for its own products, like ChatGPT.
In fact, Reddit is using OpenAI’s tech to power these new features. This collaboration allows Reddit to tap into the latest AI advancements while ensuring its content is put to good use. It’s a win-win for both sides – Reddit gets cutting-edge tools to improve its platform, and companies like OpenAI get the data they need to enhance their AI models.
Taking Away the Fun of Browsing?
This new AI Summary feature, is it going to take away the fun from Reddit. Reddit has always been a platform where one has go through tons of comments to find something relevant. But that’s the fun part of the platform. The raw feel of Reddit is what brings users to the platform. Just like Google’s search summaries that make finding the original content piece difficult and has changed the search experience on the search engine, as a Reddit user, we hope the experience on Reddit does not change much after this.
