Japan is known for being equal parts an advanced technological nation as well as one that holds steadfastly to tradition. In this particular case, we’re looking at the former with a sprinkling of AI dystopian vibes. Japanese news site Livedoor News has just announced that its latest addition to its newscasting team isn’t a person at all, but yet another AI anime girl.
AI News Streaming Welcomes a New Member
Livedoor News 24, the platform’s 24-hour news distribution service, has been implementing AI technology such as ChatGPT since September 2023 with the launch of “Hayami,” its first AI newscaster. From February 6, “Ai Horie” will be joining her AI sister as another commentator. To fairly divide the workload among the AI girls, the program will now be sectioned into three parts and continue to be broadcast 24 hours a day.
Livedoor News Founder’s AI Daughter
The company has written an extensive backstory for Ai, calling her the “AI daughter” of Takafumi Horie, nicknamed “Horiemon,” who is the executive advisor for Livedoor News. He founded Livedoor, which began as an internet service provider. Ai has apparently lived for more than 10,000 years and has a penchant for history and the teachings of her father. Rather than merely providing news to users, Ai will be able to respond to user comments and possesses a full range of expressive emotions to make her segment much more life-like.
Based on Ai’s popularity, other features may be in the pipeline, including providing her news and commentary in languages other than Japanese. The company also plans to expand the team by recruiting producers and engineers to support the continued growth of Ai Horie and the wider Livedoor News 24 platform.
You can catch Ai Horie together with Hayami over on the Livedoor News 24 YouTube channel, where they stream news from Japan and around the world.
