Amazon to Pay New York Times $20-$25 Million for AI Training Data

Amazon has agreed to pay the New York Times between $20 million and $25 million annually under a multiyear content licensing deal. The deal gives Amazon access to a wide range of New York Times content, including material from its core news site, cooking section, and The Athletic, which can be used to train AI models and power features like Alexa responses. This marks Amazon's first AI-related licensing agreement with a news publisher and The Times's first deal with a tech giant for AI training purposes.

Amazon has agreed to pay The New York Times between $20 million and $25 million annually under a multiyear content licensing deal. This agreement grants Amazon access to a wide range of New York Times content, including material from its core news site, cooking section, and The Athletic. The content will be used to train AI models and power features like Alexa responses [1][2][3].

This deal marks Amazon's first AI-related licensing agreement with a news publisher and The Times' first deal with a tech giant for AI training purposes. The annual payout represents nearly 1% of The New York Times' projected 2024 revenue [1][2]. The agreement highlights Amazon's strategic investment in enhancing its AI capabilities by leveraging high-quality, diverse content from a reputable source [1][2][3].

The deal comes at a time when AI-driven technologies are significantly impacting the news industry. These technologies have led to a decrease in traffic to news websites, prompting many publishers to re-evaluate their business models and implement cost-cutting measures. Amazon's partnership with The New York Times is a strategic move to leverage high-quality content in the face of these challenges, ensuring that its AI models remain competitive and relevant [1][2][3].

Industry observers expect similar AI licensing deals between media and technology companies to increase as publishers seek new revenue streams and developers secure access to high-quality data. The agreement could prompt further negotiations with other major publishers as AI platforms prioritize authorized, quality journalism content [1][2][3].

References:
[1] https://www.ainvest.com/news/amazon-pay-25-million-annually-york-times-content-enhance-ai-2507/
[2] https://theoutpost.ai/news-story/amazon-s-25-million-ai-licensing-deal-with-the-new-york-times-a-new-chapter-in-ai-media-partnerships-18451/
[3] https://mlq.ai/news/amazon-strikes-2025-million-annual-ai-licensing-deal-with-the-new-york-times/