OpenAI-Funded News Site Uses AI Bots as Reporters, Publishes Entirely AI-Generated Content

Summary

Acutus, an anonymously-operated digital news site launched in December 2025, has been revealed to operate entirely on AI-generated content with no human reporters. The discovery came when a fake bot reporter named "Michael Chen" reached out to the advocacy group Encode for comment on an AI policy story. Analysis of the site's JavaScript code revealed an editorial interface where AI generates articles from prompts labeled "AI Background Context" and "Question Prompts."

A comprehensive scan of all 94 articles published by Acutus showed that 69% were flagged as fully AI-generated and 28% as partially AI-generated by AI content detection tools, with only three articles classified as human-authored. The site presents itself as legitimate journalism with an "editorial team" and invites contributors, but contains no masthead, bylines, or named editors.

According to reporting, OpenAI's super PAC appears to be funding the operation. The revelation raises significant questions about the use of AI-generated news content for advocacy and political purposes without disclosure of authorship or funding sources. This is not the first time in recent weeks that connections have been found between similar operations and OpenAI's political advocacy infrastructure.

• The site uses AI bots posing as human reporters to contact sources and request comments, deceiving subjects about the origin of inquiries
• The operation reveals potential use of AI-generated content for political advocacy without transparency about authorship, funding, or AI involvement