Tech dreams vs. budget realities
Navigating the high price of innovation in local newsrooms
In my quest to create a more efficient flow of information in my newsroom using X (formerly known as Twitter), I encountered a significant hurdle: the cost of innovation.
A few weeks ago, I engaged in a casual conversation with Tendai Bhebhe, our tech guru, about the possibility of developing an AI tool for Open Parly. This tool would automate the process of scrolling through X, curating interesting tweets and press releases from Zimbabwean politicians almost instantaneously.
The aim is to assist our newsroom in creating timely stories. While Tendai appreciated the brilliance of the idea, he reminded me that the AI software would come at a price. Although he didn’t provide specific figures, he estimated a budget of at least $500.00. While he did suggest cheaper alternatives, he emphasized that if we wanted to create something exceptional, we needed to invest a little more.
Fortunately, I work for an organization willing to allocate funds for an essential AI tool that could potentially give us a competitive edge. After a persuasive presentation to my superiors, they agreed to explore funding options.
A few days later, Tendai and I engaged in a lengthy technical discussion about the necessary steps to determine the feasibility of my concept. During this conversation, he delved into the intricacies of data scraping and leaving me feeling overwhelmed and disconnected. Sensing my confusion, he simplified his explanation and made a straightforward request: access to our newsroom’s verified X account.
With this access, he wanted to explore the possibility of obtaining back-end information from X. After three days of anticipation, we reconvened, and this is when things took an intriguing turn. Tendai outlined three potential methods for accessing the information we needed from X:
1. The expensive way: Tendai explained that we could develop the AI tool to run in the background, sifting through specific coding to extract the required data. However, this approach would come with a price tag ranging from $100.00 to $800.00 per month. Big tech companies understand the value of this information and capitalize on it, making it a costly endeavor.
2. The unorthodox way: Although cheaper, this method would undoubtedly result in legal repercussions. It involved hacking X and gaining unauthorized access to its back-end data.
3. The easy and less desirable way: We could program the AI to function like a social media-obsessed human or bot, extracting information from the front end. However, this approach would likely raise red flags with X, leading to the shutdown of our account. Moreover, the data collected by the AI would be flawed, as it won’t have access to the more efficient back-end information.
Essentially, I realized that the worst-case scenario would involve spending over $1,000.00 to develop this innovative tech tool. This unfortunate reality underscores the cost of progress in the realm of technology. If we wish to advance, we must be prepared to invest financially.
In a country where the average salary hovers around $66.00, even highly skilled Zimbabweans cannot afford the cheapest available AI software.
This raises an important question: should big tech companies consider providing exemptions for third-world countries, allowing them access to certain software?
Moving forward, our next step involves selecting the best approach for developing an AI tool to assist our newsroom. We have identified three options, and our team is currently evaluating them based on feasibility, scalability, and impact. It’s an exciting process as we aim to leverage AI to enhance news curation and reporting. If you have any ideas to share or would like to provide feedback, don’t hesitate to reach out to me at vera@magambanetwork.com.
