China, Nov 09: The AI news anchor is a virtual model of Xinhua’s real anchor with realistic expressions and lip movements.

China’s Xinhua news agency on Thursday unveiled the world’s first AI anchor that can read news in English and Chinese.

Xinhua in collaboration with search engine operator Sogou unveiled the new technology at the World Internet Conference in Wuzhen, China, South China Morning Post reported. The AI anchors take the form and shape of a human being and read out news stories. They have minimal facial expressions and lip movements which look quite realistic.

Xinhua’s first English AI anchor introduces himself as what he is and what his capabilities are. This AI anchor’s face and voice has been designed based on the agency’s news anchor, Zhang Zhao. He can read news as it is typed out in the teleprompter. The AI news anchor also assures that he will “work tirelessly” and read out news without any interruptions.

The AI news anchor also collects data and learns to develop itself. “’He’ learns from live broadcasting videos by himself and can read texts as naturally as a professional news anchor,” Xinhua reported.

Xinhua further says that the AI anchor has already become a member of the agency’s reporting team. He can work for 24 hours continuously on the news website as well as its social media platform. The AI anchor is said to “reduce news production costs and improve news efficiency”.

The AI anchor has also started presenting news reports. Since it’s an AI anchor, news is read out in a very monotonous manner with no expressions in between. The AI anchor himself acknowledges that the technology is still in development and that many improvements are required.

Courtesy: www.hindustantimes.com

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Bengaluru, Jun 28: Karnataka BJP on Thursday held a state-wide protest against the Congress government over alleged illegal money transfer scam involving a state-run corporation, and demanded Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's resignation.

BJP workers and leaders held demonstrations in front of the Deputy Commissioner's office in almost all districts in the state, party sources said.

The party's state President B Y Vijayendra took part in the demonstration held in the district headquarters town of Chitradurga.

As Vijayendra and other leaders tried to march towards the Deputy Commissioner's office there, police detained them and whisked them away in a bus.

There are reports of similar protests from various parts of the state including Belagavi, Mandya and Mangaluru.

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Vijayendra alleged that the government is trying to cover up the scam in the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation.

"There are death threats to officials and those who want to expose the government's scams. Congress government has done a daylight robbery of funds that were kept for the Valmiki and other ST communities, and thereby it has done injustice to those communities," he said.

Speaking to reporters as he was being whisked away in the bus, he said, "(Medical Education) Minister Sharan Prakash Patil, Valmiki Corporation's Chairman Basanagouda Daddal will have to resign. Not only that, the Chief Minister holds the Finance portfolio, without coming to his notice such a big scam would not have happened. Allegations have surfaced that the money was utilised for the election, so the Chief Minister has to resign."

The illegal money transfer issue, involving the Corporation, came to light, after its accounts superintendent, Chandrashekhar P, died by suicide on May 26, leaving behind a death note.

The note claimed unauthorised transfer of Rs 187 crore belonging to the Corporation from its bank account, and from that, Rs 88.62 crore was illegally moved to various accounts allegedly belonging to "well-known" IT companies and a Hyderabad-based cooperative bank among others.

Chandrashekhar has named the Corporation's now-suspended Managing Director J G Padmanabh, accounts officer Parashuram G Durugannavar, and Union Bank of India Chief Manager Suchismita Rawal in the note, while also stating that the "Minister" had issued oral orders for transferring the funds.

Following allegations against him in connection with the scam, Scheduled Tribes Welfare Minister B Nagendra tendered his resignation on June 6.

Leader of Opposition R Ashoka said the BJP will press for Siddaramaiah's resignation during the upcoming Assembly session.

"Nagendra's share in this scam was only 20 per cent, 80 per cent loot was by Siddaramaiah and gang.......we will not stop our fight for any reason, it will continue. One wicket has fallen (Minister resign), three or more will follow. People know this is a corrupt government," he said in the district headquarters town of Kolar.

BJP leader and MLC C T Ravi said despite allegations that Rs 187 crore has been credited to a number of fake accounts, till now the department has recovered only Rs 14 crore.

"What action has been taken against fake account holders, has money been recovered? For none of these, SIT has answers. As the Finance department is with the CM, Siddaramaiah should take moral responsibility, as this is a big scam within the jurisdiction of his department....we are demanding -- CM has to resign taking moral responsibility," he said here.

The state government has constituted an SIT headed by Manish Kharbikar, Additional Director General of Police, Economic Offences, at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) here, to conduct the probe.

Mumbai-headquartered Union Bank of India had also filed a complaint with the CBI in connection with embezzlement of money belonging to the Corporation involving its MG Road branch, following which the premier investigation agency had initiated a probe.

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