--- title: "Quartz Fires All Writers After Move to AI Slop" description: "After moving to publish misinformation-laden AI slop, G/O Media sold Quartz and fired its editorial staff. Sadly, this has been a pattern." date: "2025-04-08" modified: "2025-04-08" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/quartz-fires-writers-ai-slop" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" tags: - "ai journalism" - "ai slop" - "media industry" - "quartz" --- # Quartz Fires All Writers After Move to AI Slop ![After moving to publish misinformation-laden AI slop, G/O Media sold Quartz and fired its editorial staff. Sadly, this has been a pattern.]() *\Image: Piaras Ó Mídheach / Sportsfile for Collision via Getty / Futurism\* The cursed pattern continues: following a baffling and error-ridden turn to AI content, the once-acclaimed business publication *Quartz* has been sold off and its editorial team almost entirely axed — making it the latest media brand to see low-quality AI use precede mass layoffs. As the business publication's cofounder Zach Seward, who now [leads]() editorial AI initiatives at *The New York Times,* [explained in a blog post yesterday](), *Quartz* has changed hands several times since its launch back in 2012. Before last week's sale, it was owned by the digital media conglomerate G/O Media, whose ever-controversial CEO Jim Spanfeller [famously misspelled *Quartz*]() when announcing G/O's 2022 purchase of the site (he spelled it "quarts," which is just a completely different word.) Fast forward three years later, and as of last week, *Quartz* has yet another new owner: a Canadian software company called Redbrick, which bought *Quartz* and the commerce site *The Inventory* from G/O for an undisclosed amount, [as *Axios* first reported](). Every editorial staffer at *Quartz*, with [the exception]() of its editor in chief and executive editor, was fired as a result of the deal. "*Quartz* is now a zombie brand, which is the most cynical move in media," Seward wrote. "I never wanted to write this piece while good people were still working at *Quartz*. Now it can be laid to rest." In January 2024, Spanfeller [told ]()*[Axios]()* that, after having sold *Jezebel* and *Lifehacker* in 2023, G/O wasn't looking to sell its full portfolio. But by the end of the year, it had unloaded both [*Gizmodo*]() and *[The Onion]() —* the respective "G" and "O" in its name — [as well as]() *The A.V. Club, The Takeout,* and *[Deadspin]().* Earlier this year, G/O also sold the automotive blog *Jalopnik*. As it stands, the media owner now has just two sites remaining in its portfolio: *Kotaku* and *The Root.* That all said, given Spanfeller's recent track record, it's not too surprising to see G/O cast off a few more brands. Another clue that, in hindsight, feels like writing on the wall? Its recent — and bad — attempt to use AI to cough up news and earnings articles. Indeed, prior to its many recent sales, G/O tried to publish AI-generated content at nearly *every* site it eventually peddled off. And these ill-fated AI efforts were among the most cynical and low-quality in the media industry. Perhaps the most notorious example of G/O's AI cynicism took place at *Gizmodo*, the tech publication now owned by the European tech firm Keleops, where G/O's leadership gave *Gizmodo's* editorial staff next to no warning before publishing a [horrendously bad]() "Star Wars" listicle filled with inaccuracies. It also fired *Gizmodo's* Spanish-language writers in an attempt to [replace them with machine translations]() of *Gizmodo*'s English-language work. Elsewhere, *Futurism's* reporting [found that]() G/O published dozens of AI articles at the venerable sports blog *Deadspin* that contained outdated and inaccurate information, as well as content to the beloved film blog the *A.V. Club* that was copied word-for-word from *IMDb*. (*Deadspin* was later sold to the startup Lineup Publishing, and the *A.V. Club* to Past Media.) *Jalopnik*, we noticed, was publishing what appears to be automated content under the byline "[Jalopnik Bot]()" up until late February 2025, when it was sold to Static Media. Most of these sales unfortunately coincided with large layoffs — a trend that we've seen across the media landscape, including at [*Sports Illustrated*](), [*CNET*](), and the[ *Village Voice* and other alt-weeklies](), [among others](). Sadly, *Quartz* and the *Inventory* are no different. As [*Aftermath* first reported in January](), *Quartz*, which had already been publishing AI-generated writeups of earnings reports attributed to "Quartz Intelligence Newsroom," had started publishing short, AI-spun news articles under the same byline. When we combed through the automated news hits, we found that Quartz Intelligence Newsroom had [cited *other* obvious AI slop]() as sources in its "reporting," and even spewed out [glaring misinformation](). At the foot of each post, G/O included a disclaimer noting that "while we strive for accuracy and timeliness, due to the experimental nature of this technology we cannot guarantee that we'll always be successful in that regard." Right. The *Inventory*, meanwhile, has been using AI to crank out shopping content for months now; those posts are each outfitted with a similar disclaimer declaring that it was "generated by an AI engine which may produce inaccurate information." The Gizmodo Media Group Union, which represents workers at G/O brands including *Quartz*, cited the *Quartz* slop in a powerful statement about the sale and mass firings. "Jim Spanfeller has fired the editorial staff of *Quartz* after loading it up with AI slop and selling it to a Canadian firm," reads the [statement](). "It's a new low for a company that has tried to disrespect, undermine, and exploit its newsroom at every turn." "G/O management's most cynical display yet comes in the middle of negotiations for our next contract," the statement [continues](). "We're heartbroken over the loss of more incredible colleagues as Spanfeller continues his race to the bottom and will continue fighting for a fair contract for those who remain." *Quartz'*s editor in chief Dan Hirschhorn, one of the site's two remaining editorial stafers, told *Axios* in a statement that the "way we connect with audiences is evolving and today marks a new chapter for *Quartz* as we work with Redbrick to help shape the future of media as the landscape rapidly transforms." Redbrick CEO Tobyn Sowden, for his part, told *Axios* that "as the media landscape continues to shift, the only way to survive and thrive is by embracing the advancements in innovation to connect and engage with audiences." We reached out to Redbrick to ask whether AI is one of those innovations, but didn't hear back by the time of publishing. **More on *Quartz*:** [*Quartz Just Published an AI-Generated Article That Absolutely Butchers the Situation With Boeing’s Stranded Astronauts*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()