Time AI debuts with magazine’s interactive Person of the Year article

By Jodie Hopperton

INMA

Los Angeles, California, United States

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Last month, Burhan Hamid, chief technology officer at Time, announced how they were updating the experience around Time’s iconic person of the year: “You can read the article in seven different languages at varying lengths, you can listen to and speak with (!) the article via AI audio, and, of course, you can chat with Time AI about this year’s Person of the Year, Donald Trump.”

Burhan Hamid’s announcement on LinkedIn.
Burhan Hamid’s announcement on LinkedIn.

You can see the article here. It’s still very much an article, but it’s moved from a static article page with embellishments such as photos and videos to something much more dynamic. It is an article for all readers that also allows individual readers to form their own personalised experience. 

No time to read? Here’s the summary. Want a different language? Here it is. You want a different format? Fine. Questions about the article? Go for it.

Time magazine gives readers interactive options with its Person of the Year article.
Time magazine gives readers interactive options with its Person of the Year article.

But it’s not overcrowding the space available with buttons and icons and options. There is a simple menu of choices as part of the main navigation. At the top, the navigation has a simple moving red “snake” to draw attention. Once the user scrolls down, it becomes sticky.

Time's interactive feature puts the reader at the center.
Time's interactive feature puts the reader at the center.

 

This isn’t just adding features. It’s actually restructuring the experience. It puts the user at the center. Not asking them what they want to know but allowing them to take action or ask follow-up questions.

This, to me, is exactly what news needs: an informed jumping off point that readers can then take in their direction.

It is also worth noting the guardrails on the chat. A few people commented that the chat struggled, probably intentionally, with topics outside of the specific article, noting it was “guarded by Scale AI” and giving the same response: “I’m here to discuss Donald Trump and the Time Person of the Year article. If you have questions about him or related topics, feel free to ask.” I’m assuming this was deliberate as part of its AI guardrails. 

You can read more about how it was made here

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About Jodie Hopperton

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