ProRataAI, a startup advocating for fair AI models, has raised $40 million in a Series B round led by Touring Capital to accelerate the rollout of Gist Answers. The AI-as-a-service solution lets publishers embed custom AI search, summarization, and recommendation tools directly into their websites—keeping users engaged while ensuring creators get credit.

Launched with early-access partners spanning 100+ publications, Gist Answers is designed to flip the script on AI search. Instead of directing audiences away from publisher sites, the tool brings conversational, AI-driven discovery onto their platforms—extending sessions, boosting engagement, and reclaiming control over how content is surfaced.

“Search has always shaped how people discover knowledge, but for too long publishers have been forced to give that power away,” said Bill Gross, CEO and founder of ProRata. “Gist Answers changes that dynamic, bringing AI search directly to their sites, where it deepens engagement, restores control, and opens entirely new paths for discovery.”

The service builds on ProRata’s wider ecosystem:

• Gist Ads turns AI responses into monetizable real estate, placing contextual ads alongside AI answers.

• Content Licensing allows publishers to extend reach by contributing vetted, licensed material to third-party Gist Answers implementations. More than 700 publications have already signed on, reinforcing ProRata’s ethical, attribution-first model.

Industry leaders are backing the approach. Nicholas Thompson, CEO of The Atlantic, said partnering with ProRata ensures journalism is used “ethically, with full credit.” Andrew Perlman of Recurrent (Popular Science) called Gist Answers a way to keep trusted reporting central in the AI era.

For advertisers, the play is equally compelling. Native placements aligned with intent-rich AI answers represent premium inventory, while publishers unlock incremental revenue streams. Touring Capital’s Nagraj Kashyap described it as “market-neutral infrastructure designed to become the default platform for attribution and fair monetization.”

ProRata, founded just last year, has now raised over $75 million. With Gist Answers gaining traction across global media, the company is positioning itself as a counterweight to AI scraping practices that sideline creators. Its mantra: AI should amplify journalism, not exploit it.