In February 2025, a big event called the Wan-Ifra AI Forum took place in Bangalore. Around 20 media leaders came together to discuss how artificial intelligence (AI) is changing newsrooms in India. This event focused on how AI is being used in everyday work. The forum helped leaders share their ideas and experiences about how AI is helping the news industry.
AI’s role in Indian newsrooms
At the event, leaders from big companies like Times Internet, The Hindu, BBC, and Dailyhunt shared how AI is changing their work. Puneet Gupt, from Times Internet, gave a talk about how AI is making their newsroom run better. He said AI helps them predict what people want to read, speed up work, and make content more personal. Times Internet has saved 80% in costs and made their ads work better. They also use AI to learn how people interact with their content so they can give people more of what they want.
The future of AI in storytelling
On the second day of the forum, the talk turned to how AI is changing how stories are told. Ezra Eeman, an AI expert from the Netherlands, explained that stories will not be the same for everyone in the future. They will change to fit what readers want. He said that while this is exciting, newsrooms need to be careful. AI should not take away the true voice of journalists. ‘We must be careful not to lose the heart of storytelling just to save time,’ he said.
AI can make it easy to tailor news to fit what each person likes, much like how you can get casino days app to enjoy a customised gaming experience. Just like the app changes your gaming to match your style, AI can help newsrooms provide readers with exactly what they want. However, it’s key that the stories stay authentic, not just made to follow a short trend.
Challenges with using AI
Even though AI brings many perks, there are also some challenges. Ravanan N from Dailyhunt, Mariam Mammen Mathew from Manorama Online, and Mayura Shreyams Kumar from Mathrubhumi talked about newsrooms’ struggles when using AI. They said it’s hard to know how much to spend on AI while keeping content good. They also warned that AI might make news too boring and generic. Mariam Mammen Mathew said, ‘AI is the future, but we must make sure it doesn’t make everything the same’. Using AI should make the news better, not worse.
AI study tour insights
After the forum, some people went to see how companies like Dashtoon, Kuku FM, Dailyhunt, and Reuters use AI. They saw how it is helping these companies create stories, enhance audio and video, and even fact-check news. AI is also helping them make more money and come up with new products. This gave people at the forum a chance to see how it can help newsrooms do things faster and better.
The forum is part of a bigger effort to help media companies learn how to use AI. This way, they can stay ahead of the fast changes in the industry.
AI is becoming more crucial in Indian newsrooms. The Wan-Ifra AI Forum showed that this technology can help newsrooms work quicker, save money, and give people more of what they want to read. It’s also vital for newsrooms to use AI in a way that keeps the real voice of journalists.
