Yahoo’s new news app is a shockingly good rebirth of Artifact

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I’m stunned. I’m delighted. I’m retraining my news app to ignore all the topics and publications I despise. Why? Because Yahoo, of all companies, has given new life to Artifact, my beloved news app that was tragically euthanized earlier this year.

Yahoo’s latest news app is essentially a rebranded Artifact, and I couldn’t be happier about it.

For the uninitiated, Artifact was the brainchild of Instagram co-founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger. Launched in January 2023, it swiftly gained a devoted following for its AI-powered personalization and clean interface.

But just months later, the founders pulled the plug, citing a lack of a large enough market opportunity to justify continuing investment. Fast forward to April 2024, and Yahoo swooped in to acquire Artifact, announcing plans to integrate its AI-driven personalization technology into its own platforms.

At the time, it seemed like Yahoo might simply absorb Artifact’s tech into its existing news app. But oh no, Yahoo has done something much smarter: it’s essentially relaunched Artifact as its new news app, replacing the old Yahoo News.

The new Yahoo News app is unmistakably Artifact, retaining the same UI, features, and personalization capabilities that made the original so great. The only major difference is that you now sign in with a Yahoo account (though you can still use the app without signing in at all). It’s available for both iOS and Android.

So what makes this reborn app so good? For starters, it aggregates news from premium sources to give you unlimited access to the stories and topics that matter most to you.

It boasts exclusive and live video, including press conferences and trending news clips. You’ll get curated top stories of the day from expert editors, along with mobile-friendly news briefs and video to keep you informed on the go.

But the real magic lies in Artifact’s “next-level personalization.” The app learns your interests and keeps you updated with the information and inspiration that resonates with you. You can customize your feed, get key takeaways of articles, and easily share stories that catch your eye.

As Yahoo News SVP Kat Downs Mulder puts it, it’s all about making the news experience simple, relevant, and useful for each user.

I’m sort of pumped to have Artifact back from the dead, even if it now bears the Yahoo News name. If you haven’t tried it yet, download it and start retraining it to your tastes. Who knows, you may be as pleasantly surprised as I am.

Will you be downloading the app? Drop us a line below in the comments, or carry the discussion to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• Otherweb is an AI-powered news app with no ads and clickbait
• The free Amazon Fire TV news app is now adding local channels in select locations
• YouTube wants you to watch more news on its app
• Substack now has an iOS app that lets you read all your newsletters in one place

Kevin Raposo

Kevin is KnowTechie's founder and executive editor. With over 15 years of blogging experience in the tech industry, Kevin has transformed what was once a passion project into a full-blown tech news publication. Shoot him an email at kevin@knowtechie.com.