Turning science fiction into reality, ACT NEWS, an Israel-based news outlet on TikTok, announced on Sunday the debut of the world's first fully AI-automated news edition presented by digital avatar clones. This groundbreaking development in news broadcasting sets a new standard in journalism and paves the way for an unprecedented approach to engaging diverse audiences worldwide.
Introducing a reality where correspondents can work on stories in the field while their AI-powered digital clones deliver live broadcasts on screen, two renowned journalists have signed to the network, bringing their expertise and AI personas to present current affairs broadcasts.
A digital clone of veteran news anchor Miri Michaeli will take on the responsibility of presenting the daily edition of ACT NEWS, while Amit Segal, Israel's leading political correspondent from Channel 12 News, will report as a digital clone on the regular newscasts. Both journalists have committed to pre-approving all their quotes before broadcast, ensuring accuracy and credibility in the news delivered through their digital counterparts.
Launched on TikTok just three months ago by Moshe Klughaft and Miri Michaeli, and operating in English, Spanish, German, and other languages, ACT NEWS newscasts have garnered nearly 40 million views worldwide, surpassing all other leading TV news brands on the social media platform. Catering to the vast population of social media users, who are often less exposed to news on a regular basis, ACT NEWS produces innovative daily editions covering a wide range of current topics.
With the AI-generated avatars now taking center stage, ACT NEWS’s news content and script formulation will also be wholly driven by artificial intelligence, presenting a fully automated news edition in eight languages that pushes the boundaries of modern journalism even further.
To date, ACT News has secured investment valuing the company at USD 7.5 million and is poised to launch its second fundraising round shortly. Additionally, ACT NEWS has already begun signing additional talent for representation as digital avatars, engaging in negotiations with top news presenters from the United States and the United Kingdom.
Moshe Klughaft, co-founder of ACT NEWS, said: "The news of the future begins today. Presenting news editions through digital avatars and writing the news with artificial intelligence will lead journalists to focus on the core of the journalistic work: investigations, exposés, exclusive stories, and personal interviews, and focus on subjects that are not covered in the mainstream media. Additionally, it will dramatically reduce costs for media companies worldwide and allow them to create better content. ACT NEWS will continue to lead the news of the future on social networks and is currently working on additional developments to be released soon.”
Miri Michaeli, co-founder and chief news anchor of ACT NEWS, said, “Like every startup, our project was born out of a personal need. My dream has always been to be able to report from two places simultaneously, provide in-depth analysis, and film a report simultaneously. Today, we offer this possibility to journalists all over the world."