AI and Human Collaboration: Capsule’s Innovative News Curation App
Capsule, a startup based in Paris, aims to revolutionize how people consume daily news. The company’s goal is to become the “Spotify for news” by using AI technology and human editorial curation to offer a news reading experience that transforms articles, newsletter snippets, and social media updates into easily digestible information through its user-friendly app.
The user experience of Capsule is similar to swiping through TikTok or other social media apps. The app features a vertical scrolling feed where news is presented as headlines with accompanying photos, or screenshots of posts on platforms like Twitter and LinkedIn. Users can tap on these headlines to read a summary of the news and can choose to read the full article or social post directly on the publisher’s website.
The inspiration for the app came from co-founders Jérôme Boé and Arthur de Villemand. Boé had previously developed a short-form video app called Snax, while de Villemand had authored a newsletter called “Magma” focusing on business trends and insights.
Image Credits: Capsule
Boé explains that Capsule aims to make quality news more accessible by relying on a network of curators. The company plans to organize news and information similar to the way Spotify organizes music, by creating “playlists” of news and providing recommendations.
Capsule uses AI to distill essential information from articles, which is then supplemented by the company’s editorial team with additional research. The editorial team, made up of 10 freelancers, adds new content and provides a fuller picture, avoiding other metrics such as social shares or likes.
Image Credits: Capsule
The curators’ news findings are also sourced and verified by Capsule’s editorial team, and around 20 to 30 selected insights are added to Capsule each day. AI is employed to curate related news stories and provide a selection of similar news beneath articles in the app.
Capsule has no current limitations on news sources in its feed and has tapped into over 400 news sources. The app is currently free to download on iOS.