How to Build an AI News Monitoring System (Free, in 15 Minutes)

If you're subscribed to 10 AI newsletters and still feel behind, the problem isn't information scarcity — it's information overload. Here's a system that filters hundreds of AI posts, articles, and discussions down to 4-6 themes and 5-8 high-signal links, delivered to you every morning. It takes 15 minutes to set up and costs nothing.

The Two-Source System

Source 1: Perplexity (Web + Reddit + Academic). Create a Perplexity scheduled task (available on free plans) with this prompt:

"Scan the past 24 hours of AI news across web publications, Reddit (r/MachineLearning, r/artificial, r/ChatGPT, r/LocalLLaMA), and arXiv. Identify 4-6 key themes. For each theme: one-sentence summary, why it matters, and 1-2 high-signal links. Skip product announcements unless they're from major labs. Skip opinion pieces unless they contain new data. Prioritize: model releases, research papers with real-world implications, regulatory developments, and significant business moves."

Source 2: Grok (X/Twitter discourse). Use Grok's ability to search X in real time. Daily prompt: "Summarize the top 5 AI discussions on X in the past 24 hours. Focus on posts with high engagement from credible accounts. For each: what's being debated, the key positions, and any verifiable claims or data shared."

Together, these cover the web, academic sources, Reddit, and social media — without you opening a single tab.

The One-Source Version (Simpler)

If you want just one source, Perplexity alone covers 80% of what you need. Modify the prompt to include "also check X/Twitter discourse from AI researchers and founders" and you'll get a slightly less detailed social media summary alongside the web and Reddit coverage.

Customizing for Your Interests

Replace the subreddits and topic filters with your specific interests. If you care about AI in healthcare, specify medical AI subreddits and healthcare publication sources. If you care about AI investing, add financial sources and market-moving announcements. The prompt structure works for any fast-moving domain.

What to Do With the Briefings

Read the themes first — 30 seconds. Click into 1-2 links that are relevant to your work — 2-3 minutes. Forward anything important to your team or save to your Obsidian vault. Done in under 5 minutes.

The goal isn't to read everything. It's to know enough to spot what matters and ignore the rest. This system replaces 10 newsletters, 4 Reddit checks, and 2 Twitter scrolls with a single 5-minute morning read.

For more on staying current with AI, see our State of AI Models page where we track changes across all major models, and our complete Perplexity guide.

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