175-year-old Associated Press (AP), the world's most trusted news agency, will provide economic, sports, and election data to Chainlink, a system that feeds information into blockchains and triggers digital contracts in order to facilitate transactions.

The Associated Press announced on October 21 that smart contract developers would have access to the agency's "economic, sports, and race call data" once the node was live.

The AP reports that it will publish data on-chain for developers to use in applications, as well as provide information about upcoming elections and help nonfungible token artists.

Dwayne Desaulniers, the AP's head of blockchain and data licencing, said, “Chainlink technology is the ideal way to provide smart contract developers anywhere in the world with direct, on-demand access to AP’s trusted economic, sports, and race call data." 

He adds, “Working with Chainlink allows this information to be compatible with any blockchain.”

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Automated processes can be implemented using the data, including informing markets of election race calls, triggering an on-chain trade with quarterly financial reports or enhancing non-fungible token appearance based on real-world events.

The Associated Press stated the move to the blockchain was motivated by "trust," because the on-chain data it offered would be a publicly available, safe, and secure record of verified facts. The news agency said it would be ready to change its strategy based on developer feedback.

The availability of AP's datasets via Chainlink coincides with the growing popularity of smart contracts — tamper-proof computer programs that trigger results when predetermined conditions are met — particularly in areas such as decentralized finance (DeFi) and NFTs.

New York-based Associated Press, founded in 1846, is an American not-for-profit news agency, a collective owned by its member newspapers and broadcasters, has diversified its revenue streams and has disrupted the online publishing industry.

Pavan A

CBW - External Analyst

INDIA