Thomson Reuters Shifts Strategy by Focusing on AI

Thomson Reuters, a Canada-based media group, is undergoing a transformation by integrating AI into its news distribution system. The company has released its AI principles to ensure user trust in its technology deployment. In March, Steve Hasker, the CEO of Reuters, announced an $8 billion investment in AI investments and acquisitions.
Thomson Reuters believes that AI will be a transformative force rather than a threat to its business. The company also operates a corporate venture capital unit called Thomson Reuters Ventures, which invests in series-A enterprises and seeds in various technology fields. The company plans to integrate AI tools into its services and train its 26,000 employees to effectively utilize AI. The research tool will be based on Westlaw Precision AI technology to enhance the search process.
Reuters intends to sell its holdings in the London Stock Exchange Group and use its financial resources to expand its business in professional services driven by AI and information. The company generates significant cash flow and is not heavily reliant on debt.
Thomson Reuters plans to invest around $100 million annually in developing its own AI technology for legal, accounting, and tax purposes to better serve its customers. The company has transitioned from being a content provider to a technology company through a two-year program designed specifically for this purpose.
While customer spending patterns have been unclear, Reuters acknowledges that AI has helped secure business. Over the past year and a half, the company has spent $2 billion on acquisitions, focusing on firms with AI capabilities such as Pagero, Sureprep, and Casetext.
Reuters currently generates 80% of its revenue from the US market but aims to change this in the next five years by expanding into Asian regions like Japan and Southeast Asia, as well as Brazil and Mexico in America.
The company has also made deals with AI firms that use Reuters’ news to train their models. These firms rely on Reuters for its high-quality content, which is crucial for training AI models. Reuters has also launched new AI services that allow users to ask complex questions and receive AI-assisted answers from credible legal resources. The company plans to introduce more than half a dozen new AI products in the coming months.
Thomson Reuters’ AI principles can be viewed here, and Steve Hasker’s talk can be viewed here.