In January 2023, BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti announced a hard pivot to AI, promising to use OpenAI's ChatGPT to power personalized quizzes and eventually replace "the majority of static content" on the site. The stock spiked from around $3 to over $15 on the news. Then reality arrived.

Three years later, BuzzFeed's 2025 earnings tell a grim story. The company reported a net loss of $57.3 million for the year, and its official filing now warns of "substantial doubt about the Company's ability to continue as a going concern." Shares have fallen to around $0.70.

What Went Wrong

The AI-generated quizzes underwhelmed users, and the site was later caught publishing sloppy, repetitive AI-written articles. Traffic and advertising revenue cratered. The company shut down its Pulitzer Prize-winning BuzzFeed News division in April 2023 — just months after the AI pivot — and has been bleeding cash since.

CFO Matt Omer acknowledged the company had reduced debt by more than 65% from a high of over $180 million, but said "legacy commitments" continue to burden the business. Strategic conversations about relieving liquidity issues are underway.

CEO Still Betting on AI

Despite the collapse, Peretti hasn't changed course. In the earnings statement, he said 2026's focus would be "demonstrating the value of our brands, Studio IP, and new AI apps to the market."

The BuzzFeed arc is shaping up as a defining cautionary tale: a media company that chased AI hype, gutted the journalism that defined it, and now faces an existential reckoning — with its leadership still betting the remaining chips on the same bet that brought it here.