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Google launches paid AI pilot with publishers including Der Spiegel, El Pais, The Guardian and The Washington Post

Google began a commercial pilot in which participating publishers receive direct payments while Google tests AI article overviews and audio briefings on their Google News pages. Amounts were not disclosed.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., December 10, 2025 - Google announced a commercial pilot program with news publishers in which participating publications receive direct payments while Google tests AI-powered article overviews on their Google News pages. Publishers named include Der Spiegel, El Pais, Folha, Infobae, Kompas, The Guardian, The Times of India, The Washington Examiner and The Washington Post. Payment amounts were not disclosed.1

Terms of the deal

TechCrunch reported that Google said the purpose of the program is to explore how AI can drive more engaged audiences. The AI-generated article overviews will appear only on the Google News pages of participating publications and not elsewhere in Google News or Search. Google is also experimenting with audio briefings for people who prefer listening to the news.1

Publications in the pilot receive direct payments from Google, which TechCrunch noted could offset a possible fall in traffic from AI summaries. Google is also working with organizations such as Estadao, Antara, Yonhap and The Associated Press to bring real-time information into the Gemini app.1

Background

The pilot came after Google's first news licensing deal, with the Associated Press in January 2025, and after months of publisher complaints that AI summaries reduce clicks.12 In October 2026 Google said more than 400 publications were taking part, with Axios, CNN, the Financial Times and Forbes among the newest, in a program that it said pays for the delivery and use of enhanced content to develop new AI features.3

What it means for data sellers

Google's pilot shows a buyer paying for a specific kind of content version, the enhanced content needed for its features, instead of a general license to a text archive. A seller may be able to sell structured or specially prepared data at a different price from the underlying content.

Sellers should read what the buyer calls the payment. A payment for services or partnership may carry different rights, and different limits on training, than a license, and the label affects what the seller can do with the same data elsewhere.

This entry is a news summary. SellYourAIData was not involved in the deal.

How the deal came together

  1. Google announced the pilot. On December 10, 2025 Google described a commercial partnership program with news publishers.
  2. AI overviews on publisher pages. AI-powered article overviews appear only on participating publishers' Google News pages.
  3. Audio briefings are tested. Google is also experimenting with audio briefings.
  4. Publishers are paid. Participating publications receive direct payments from Google.

Takeaways for companies with data

  • Google framed the payments as a commercial partnership, not a license for training.
  • The first group mixed large and regional international publishers.
  • The pilot is a test, so terms may change.

Sources

Every numbered reference above points to an entry here. Figures come from these pages as of the date shown at the top of the article. Where a source reports a number it got from unnamed people, the text says so.

  1. Google is testing AI-powered article overviews on select publications' Google News pages (TechCrunch, December 2025)
  2. Google signs deal with AP to deliver up-to-date news through its Gemini AI chatbot (The Associated Press, January 2025)
  3. Google now pays 400 publications to feed AI features in Google News (PPC Land, October 2026)

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About the AI Data Deal Tracker

SellYourAIData tracks publicly reported sales and licenses of data to AI companies, with the price, terms and sources for each. Entries are checked against public reporting and updated as deals change. SellYourAIData was not involved in this deal. To ask what your company's data could sell for, get a free valuation. To report a deal, contact us.