Free-to-use AI-driven news app

Artifact is a free-to-use productivity app that delivers news tailored to your specific needs. Developed by Instagram co-founders Mike Krieger and Kevin Systrom, it leverages artificial intelligence (AI) to curate news articles that fit your preferences. What it lacks in captivating visual design, it makes up with machine learning capabilities that adapt to both short-term and long-term reading needs, making it a must-have for the digital reader.

In terms of appearance and user experience, Artifact can be initially compared to Inoreader, Reddit, or Google News. However, its AI sorting capability makes it feel driven by social media algorithms.

Your smart news aggregator

News aggregators collect multiple sources and publications in one location, and Artifact uses the customization algorithm often used in social media platforms to define the user experience. When you first use the app, it presents you with the most popular news sites such as The New York Times. The more you use it, the more it selects the content that it offers.

There’s nothing original to expect from the layout, which makes it intuitive for regular users of news aggregation apps. Also, it has begun introducing a social aspect, allowing you to follow influencers and popular people and gain access to the materials that they read. More importantly, while it caters to news sources from both sides of the political spectrum, it is practicing how to filter out unverified or false materials.

However, this app remains restricted in terms of resources, which means that only a limited number of users can access the platform. If you can’t use the app after downloading, you can join its waiting list. One concern about its AI-driven news curation is whether it will create an echo chamber for users, especially if it curates articles based on user preferences.

A growing, learning article platform

If you regularly read articles, Artifact is definitely worth a shot. While it looks and feels like any other news aggregation app, it leverages social media strategies to better meet the user’s reading habits and needs, which ultimately improves the user experience by sparing you from materials you might find irrelevant or uninteresting. However, it still has a couple of limitations that the developers intend to address down the line.