Max Frumes, the founder of Quant Media, writes about how he’s using technology and business journalism to report on problem companies before they become readily apparent.
Frumes writes, “The intrinsic value of wrapping any such technology or alternative data source with content produced by journalists and/or technically skilled editorial staff comes from the journalistic mission: uncovering the truth and distributing it to people to better inform a community, creating more informed decision-makers. A great recent example is alternative data provider Thinknum, which just launched Thinknum Media, with former Wall Street Journal reporter Joshua Fruhlinger to use its tools to get scoops on wide-ranging retail and tech trends. Others include Ravenpack, which does a number of things to pair content with technology, such as providing a sentiment analysis on news feeds like Dow Jones using natural language technology.
“There are also societal benefits to publishing content from one’s own technology. By doing so, important information is spread more quickly. The “alpha” is still there for clients (unless the story is disseminated through the sellside), and it is also contributing to the larger financial ecosystem instead of being captive to just one or two firms. The niche information providers often have a symbiotic relationship with the larger news outlets, having done the technical work that generalists don’t have the expertise or resources to do themselves.
“I’ve written before on the importance of the human element when innovating on various artificial intelligence products and systems. This is why I stress how the mission of a news organization needs to include the aim to be a moral arbiter of the community to which it is publishing. This improves intrinsic motivation for those joining knowing that their company mission is worthwhile, and it serves as a direct protection against conflicts.”
Read more here.
