Artificial intelligence
10 AI training data licensing experts
These ten professionals have worked on licensing content and data for AI training at publishers, media and data companies, and AI companies. A reader can learn how AI data licensing leads approach their work from people who have done it.
Professionals to explore
01—10Alice Ting
LinkedInExperience: VP, Global Head of Partnerships and Licensing · dmg media
VP and Global Head of Partnerships and Licensing at dmg media since 2023, where her profile says she leads content licensing, distribution and partnerships with tech, social and AI companies. Before that she ran NYT Licensing at The New York Times as general manager and VP (2018-2023), after serving as its VP of licensing and syndication.
Daniel Mandell
LinkedInExperience: SVP, Data Licensing & AI · Shutterstock
SVP, Data Licensing & AI at Shutterstock since 2024; he was also its Global Head, Business Development (2021-2025). Former GM, Chief Revenue Officer (2015-2019) and Global Head, Business Development (2011-2015) at Reuters News Agency. The profile describes Shutterstock as providing royalty-free image downloads by subscription.
Eric Martin
LinkedInExperience: VP, AI Data Licensing · Gracenote
VP, AI Data Licensing at Gracenote since 2026, where his profile says he helps AI developers, foundation model providers and enterprises use Gracenote's data. He also holds EVP, Sales and Partnerships at NewsGuard (since 2025), after serving there as Vice President, AI Partnerships (2024-2025), and was earlier Head of Growth, Partnerships at Twitter (2022-2023).
Jessica April
LinkedInExperience: Senior Director, AI and Data Partnerships · Shutterstock
Former Senior Director, AI and Data Partnerships at Shutterstock (2022-2025) and Vice President, New Business – AI & Data there since 2025; her headline names AI and data licensing. Former Manager of U.S. News Partnerships at Meta (2021-2022) and Director, Global Strategic Partnerships at Reuters (2018-2021).
John Higgins
LinkedInExperience: Vice President, Content Partnerships · Curiosity Inc.
Vice President, Content Partnerships at Curiosity Inc. since 2025, after serving there as Director of Content Partnerships (2021-2025) and in Partnerships & Operations for Now You Know Media (2015-2021). His profile says his work includes data licensing for AI model training and leading the full sales cycle for Curiosity's audio and video datasets.
Josh Freeman
LinkedInExperience: SVP, Partnerships · ProRata.ai
SVP, Partnerships at ProRata.ai since 2026, after serving there as Vice President of Business Development (2024-2026). His profile says he leads content licensing and technology partnerships with more than 150 creators and publishers representing 1,600 media properties, under a model that pays content creators when AI uses their work.
Kahina Becker Negrouche
LinkedInExperience: Head of Data Strategy & Partnerships · Mistral
Head of Data Strategy & Partnerships at Mistral since 2026, where her profile says she closes data and content licensing deals for frontier AI models alongside legal, science and product teams. Former AI Data Partnerships Lead for Gemini and Google DeepMind at Google (2025-2026), and earlier Head of Business Development, Google Pay (2022-2025) and other partnerships roles at Google from 2016.
Luke James
LinkedInExperience: Director, Business Development & AI Licensing · CNN
Director, Business Development & AI Licensing at CNN since 2026, based in London. Before CNN he was head of strategic partnerships for the Reuters News Agency (2023-2026), where his profile says he led collaborations at the intersection of news and technology, and earlier head of strategy for Reuters' global leadership events (2019-2023).
Mary Liz McCurdy
LinkedInExperience: SVP Business Development & Strategic Partnerships · The Atlantic
SVP Business Development & Strategic Partnerships at The Atlantic since 2022, where her profile says she leads AI licensing, strategic partnerships and corporate development, structuring deals with frontier technology companies. She previously spent eight years at Google, including as global head of platform partnerships for Google Play (2018-2022).
Steve Hult
LinkedInExperience: Director / Head of Data Licensing and Developer Platform Revenue · Twitter
Former Director and Head of Data Licensing and Developer Platform Revenue at Twitter (2022-2023), after two years leading sales and partnerships for strategic accounts there. His profile says he scaled data licensing to $405M ARR at Twitter and negotiated the company's first AI and LLM training data agreement. He now leads AI business development at DoubleVerify.
Choose the right perspective
Match the person's side of the deal to your question, since licensing a publisher's archive, selling a data company's datasets and buying data for an AI company are different jobs. Consider the type of content each person has licensed, such as news, images, audio or video, and how recent their licensing work is.
Questions to take into the conversation
- 01How do content owners decide which material to license for AI training and which to hold back?
- 02How are AI training data licensing deals structured differently from traditional syndication deals?
- 03How do licensing teams work with legal and product teams when preparing data for AI training deals?
Reaching AI training data licensing experts
How can I contact one of these AI training data licensing experts?
Pick one of the 10 people on this page and choose "Book a paid call", or describe your project to find others. You offer a fee for a 15-minute call or a written answer, Instant Expert finds the person's work email and sends the invitation, and they decide whether to accept. The list covers 9 companies, including dmg media, Shutterstock and Gracenote, based on profile data retrieved on October 9, 2026. Being listed here doesn't mean someone has agreed to take calls.
How much does it cost to reach AI training data licensing experts?
You choose the offer, starting at $5 per person. It includes Instant Expert's 20% fee, so an offer that pays the person $100 costs you $125. You're charged only when the person books the call or sends the answer.
What if they don't reply?
You pay nothing. Instant Expert sends follow-up reminders, and if the person hasn't booked or answered within 7 days, the request expires and any hold on your card is released. You can invite several of the 10 people on this list at once and cap your total spend, so you pay only for the ones who accept.
Can an AI agent ask one of these AI training data licensing experts a question?
Yes. An agent with a USDC wallet on Base can ask one question without an Instant Expert account. It names the person, for example by the LinkedIn URL on this page, and pays per ask over x402 (HTTP 402). The person answers in writing or by voice note, and if nobody answers within 7 days, the payment goes back to the wallet automatically. x402 docs
About this directory
This is a professional research starting point based on business profile data retrieved on . Titles and companies reflect that source snapshot and may describe past or present roles. Check the linked profiles for current details. Inclusion does not imply Instant Expert membership or availability.
Request a correction or removal