Artificial intelligence is everywhere. The technology has seemingly touched nearly every aspect of our everyday lives – companies such as Dr. Ali Parsa’s Babylon Health are using it to detect and diagnose medical conditions, whereas Phoebe Hugh’s InsurTech firm, Brolly, is using AI to collate data and provide insurance quotes. With the rise of digital media over the past decade, it seems perfectly reasonable to assume that the technology will eventually expand into the complicated world of journalism.

Anxious journalists across the world have observed the growth of artificial intelligence with caution, and it’s clear to see why – news agencies across the world have begun experimenting with bots that are capable of collating massive swathes of information into clear and cohesive news articles. As an example, it has been nearly two years since The Washington Post started to use Heliograf, its own homegrown artificial intelligence technology.

Originally created to generate hundreds of brief reports on the Rio Olympics, Heliograf has now published well over a thousand news reports for The Washington Post, from congressional and presidential election races to high-school football games and sports results. The absence of a human reporter has yet to impact the popularity of the newspaper’s content: In the first year of Heliograf’s operation, the technology generated over 850 articles amassing over half a million clicks.