I hate news apps.
The only one I use is Apple News. And I only use it for the daily crosswords.
That changed two days ago when I found Artifact. Here's why.
About Artifact
Artifact is an app from the co-founders of Instagram. This could be good or bad depending on who you ask.
It's an app infused with AI that solves some of the biggest things I hate about news apps:
it automatically mutes publishers if you run out of free content (no more paywalls 🎉)
it pulls quality articles from many sources, including independent writers
it has a reader mode that makes content 10x cleaner
you can block publishers you hate
you can block keywords and phrases (no more overly political content)
It's free at the moment. And people seem to love it (4.7/5 stars from 5,300+ ratings).
Here are the features that stand out (for good and bad reasons):
Yet Another For You Page
I hate "for you" pages. I think they're destroying my generation (I'm Gen Z).
Artifact's For You page isn't anything magical. Like any For You page, it has content that deserves to be deleted from the internet forever.
But it's not horrible. That's big coming from me.
I've actually found valuable content, including:
a few "hidden gem" apps I'll probably write about in the coming weeks
cool frameworks for different aspects of my life
genuinely helpful career advice
Of course, there's still algorithm-generated trash. But you're probably gonna get that anywhere.
I still found some cool content. That's awesome.
AI Summaries
This feels like a toy. That being said, it can be useful at times.
This feature is what the name says—it summarizes articles with AI.
There's a few styles you can pick from: Summary, Explain Like I'm Five, Emoji, Poem, and Gen Z (this one is pretty funny).
Here's what Poem looks like:
This AI summary feature is useful for announcement-style posts—you'll get the main point of the article without having to navigate through 147 annoying ads.
Clickbait
Another cool feature is the community clickbait filter.
Users can mark different articles as clickbait. I assume Artifact quiets posts with many clickbait votes.
I've noticed that there are less "CLICK ME" articles. So I guess it's working?
Dark Mode
Dark mode in Artifact actually works. Every article I've read actually turns dark.
If you've ever used your iPad at night, you know how big of a deal this is.
Bye-Bye Ads
I mentioned this before, but Artifact has a reader mode that makes articles 10x cleaner.
It's similar to Safari's reader mode. In fact, it might be the same thing (not 100% sure).
Whatever it is, it's a nice inclusion. This + dark mode makes reading articles enjoyable.
Add Paid Subscriptions
If you pay for any news subscriptions, you can connect them with Artifact.
Once you log in via Artifact, you'll get recommendations for articles from the sources you pay for.
I don't have any subscriptions so I can't test out this feature. But like most Artifact features, it sounds useful.
Read What You Want. Hide What You Don't Want.
This is big for me.
Artifact makes it easy for you to add your interests and block certain topics.
For instance, I don't like reading overly charged political content. Artifact helps me filter out depressing topics I don't wanna read right after I wake up.
Additionally, I recently started exploring blockchain tech. It's easy for me to add blockchain as an interest and get relevant content in my feed.
No More "You've Run Out Of Free Articles"
Artifact has a built-in paywall filter that mutes publishers once you've ran out of free articles.
I assume this feature works—I haven't hit a paywall at all.
I love this. Mostly because I hate paywalls on news sites. With a passion.
Here's What I Think
I think Artifact is a pretty cool app.
It has a ton of cool features—paywall prevention, clickbait tracking, and genuine dark mode are super useful.
The only thing I don't like is some of the low-quality content in my For You Page. But if it means I get to see some "hidden gem" posts, I'll take it.
Overall, a solid app. I'm gonna take some time to dive deeper.
I'm hopeful 🤞
Final Thoughts
"Bad news travels at the speed of light; good news travels like molasses"—Tracy Morgan
Thanks for reading!
Adi
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