Toronto-based Wattpad Books will start publishing with six young-adult titles this fall. The company’s machine-learning technology scans the millions of stories on the platform—which has 70 million users—to find certain elements that can predict a story’s commercial success, according to CEO Allen Lau. (New York Times)
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Toronto-based Wattpad Books will start publishing with six young-adult titles this fall. The company’s machine-learning technology scans the millions of stories on the platform—which has 70 million users—to find certain elements that can predict a story’s commercial success, according to CEO Allen Lau. (New York Times)
Talking point: This is a natural progression in the company’s push to commercialize its content. In 2016, Lau already shared his ambitious plans to make Wattpad into an entertainment company, or “the next Disney,” as he called it. The company has been investing in machine learning to get there, laying off 10 percent of its staff in 2017 to focus more on the technology and on Wattpad Studios, which partners with TV and movie networks to produce content. Wattpad Studios already has partnerships with Paramount, NBC and Entertainment One. Meanwhile, other Canadians are looking to connect writers and the entertainment industry in a similar way; entrepreneur Khaled Sabawi launched Open Platform this month with film producer Sandy Climan.
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