AI-Powered News App Rio Aims to Enhance the News Experience
While AI’s foray into journalism has been met with skepticism, a new wave of startups believes AI can revolutionize how consumers engage with news. Enter Rio, an AI-driven news anchor that curates stories and topics from reputable sources, helping readers stay informed and connected.
Curio’s AI Technology Takes Center Stage
Rio is the brainchild of the team behind Curio, an AI-powered audio journalism startup. Founded in 2016 by ex-BBC strategist Govind Balakrishnan and London lawyer Srikant Chakravarti, Curio has secured funding from Khosla Ventures and Chris Anderson, head of TED, for its latest venture.
Curating News from Trusted Sources
Rio scans headlines from respected publications like Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, and The Washington Post, curating content into a daily news briefing that users can read or listen to. The app aims to expand users’ understanding of topics and encourage deeper exploration, preventing echo chambers.
Image Credits: Curio/Rio
Engaging with Rio: AI Chatbot and Audio Episodes
Users can interact with Rio through an AI chatbot interface, asking about topics of interest. The app suggests topics like “TikTok ban” or “Ukraine War” and offers to create audio episodes for further learning. While the AI may occasionally be slow to respond, it generally performs as expected.
Image Credits: Curio/Rio
The Future of AI-Enhanced News
Rio’s popularity among Curio users, with over 20,000 questions asked since its launch as a feature in May, prompted the spinoff into a standalone app. As Chakravarti notes:
AI has us all wondering what’s true and what’s not. You can scan AI sites for quick answers, but trusting them blindly is a bit of a gamble. Reliable knowledge is hard to come by. Only a lucky few get access to fact-checked, verified information. Rio guides you through the news, turning everyday headlines from trusted sources into knowledge. Checking the news with Rio leaves you feeling fulfilled instead of down.
While Rio’s stickiness as a standalone product remains to be seen, its interface could potentially be integrated into larger news aggregators like Google News or Apple News, or even individual publishers’ sites.
The Rise of AI-Powered News Startups
Rio is not alone in its mission to enhance the news reading experience through AI. Other startups, such as Particle, built by former Twitter engineers, and Bulletin, which tackles clickbait and offers news summaries, have also entered the fray. Even Artifact, before its acquisition by Yahoo, leveraged AI in its news platform.
Rio is currently in early access, with plans for a public launch later this summer. Interested users can join the waitlist at rionews.ai or use this invite link (limited to five users).
2 Comments
So, Rio’s stepping up the game with some fresh funds, huh? Interesting times ahead!
Guess we’re not far from AI reading us bedtime stories, eh? Exciting stuff with Rio!