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Reddit and OpenAI announce data partnership giving ChatGPT access to Reddit content

Reddit gave OpenAI access to its Data API so ChatGPT can surface real-time Reddit content. Reddit in turn gets AI features built on OpenAI models, and OpenAI becomes a Reddit advertising partner.

SAN FRANCISCO, May 16, 2024 Reddit and OpenAI announced a partnership under which OpenAI will access Reddit's Data API, giving ChatGPT and other OpenAI products structured, real-time Reddit content. Neither company disclosed financial terms.1

Terms of the deal

OpenAI gets real-time content through the Reddit Data API, intended to help ChatGPT show Reddit content, especially on recent topics. Reddit will bring AI-driven features to its users and moderators using OpenAI's language models, and OpenAI committed to becoming a Reddit advertising partner.1 The deal is described as similar to Reddit's earlier agreement with Google.1 The announcement did not state a price or term length.

Background

Reddit's CEO, Steve Huffman, framed the agreement as consistent with Reddit's view of a connected internet that helps people find relevant content.1 Reddit had restricted free large-scale access to its data in 2023 and has since treated licensing as a revenue line alongside advertising. A reported figure of about $60 million for the earlier Google contract circulated in coverage, but no figure was published for the OpenAI deal.1

What it means for data sellers

The Reddit-OpenAI structure shows that the buyer's interest was fresh, structured content, not only historical archives. Sellers with continuously updated data can license ongoing access rather than a single delivery. The bundle of features and advertising also shows that terms can include non-cash value. A company in a similar position should decide early whether it wants cash, product integration or both, and should document what the buyer may do with the data, since the public announcement left training use unspecified.

How the deal came together

  1. Reddit built a paid data channel. After tightening access to its Data API in 2023, Reddit positioned structured access to its content as a commercial product.
  2. A first license set the pattern. Reddit had already signed a similar arrangement with Google earlier in 2024, which gave it a template for the OpenAI terms.
  3. A partnership with products on both sides. The deal bundled data access with AI features for Reddit users and moderators and an advertising relationship, not just a data fee.
  4. Announced by both companies. Reddit and OpenAI published matching statements on May 16, 2024, without financial terms.

Takeaways for companies with data

  • Data access deals often bundle product features and advertising, so value is not only the licensing fee.
  • A first licensee gives you a reference contract that makes the second negotiation faster.
  • Structured, real-time access through an API is easier to meter and license than a one-time archive.

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. OpenAI signs deal with Reddit for real-time content access (Business Today, May 2024)

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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.