World's first humanoid news anchor robots unveiled

What happened

At the 7th World Media Summit in Beijing on November 5 to 9, Xinhua presented two robots about the size of real people. The female robot Xinyan stood on a raised stage, said hello to the crowd, and read an opening news report. Xinhua says these are the first humanoid robot news anchors in the world.

Key facts

• Two robots, one male and one female, each about the same size as a real person
• Event: 7th World Media Summit, Beijing, November 5 to 9
• The robots connect to Xinhua Yudian, an AI news platform and virtual assistant launched in June
• The company UBTech builds the robots, including their artificial skin

How the robots were made

The team asked film director Zhang Yimou to be the visual director. He guided the robots' looks and body design. He wanted them to look natural and professional, with the feel of a TV news show. The robots get fresh news from Xinhua's AI platform. UBTech says its system gets verified news in real time, which should help stop false information and made-up content caused by AI 'hallucinations', when AI tools invent facts.

Why it matters

This shows how news groups may use AI to present the news. Xinhua says the robots only read and present reports. They are not the authors. Xinhua's head of its New Media Center says journalists and editors are still the most important people. Many forum guests agreed that humans should lead and machines should help. Checking facts and reporting from the scene are jobs that AI should not replace.

What to watch

• Whether other news outlets copy humanoid news anchors
• How well the robots handle live news and multiple languages
• Whether news groups set clear rules on who is responsible for AI-read content
• How much detail Xinhua shares about the technology, which it says is still secret