Meet Fedha: Kuwait’s First AI News Presenter Takes the Stage
By Boniface Ihiasota, USA
A Kuwaiti media outlet has introduced an artificial intelligence-generated virtual news presenter named “Fedha”, with plans to use her to read online news bulletins.
Fedha made her debut on the Twitter account of the Kuwait News website as an image of a woman wearing a black jacket and white T-shirt.
The site is affiliated with the Kuwait Times, the first English-language daily in the Gulf region, which was founded in 1961.
Abdullah Boftain, deputy editor-in-chief for both outlets, said the move is a test of AI’s potential to offer “new and innovative content”.
Fedha’s initial 13-second video generated a flood of reactions on social media, including from journalists.
In the future, she could present news bulletins on the site’s Twitter account, which has 1.2 million followers.
Kuwait ranked 158 out of 180 countries and territories in the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) 2022 Press Freedom Index.
