"Meet Ankita": Himanta Biswa Sarma Shares Video Of AI Anchor Reporting On Assam Cabinet Meeting

The AI era is here, and with it, AI news anchors are becoming a reality, transforming the way we consume news. India's AI news anchor landscape is also rapidly expanding, with numerous channels and organisations adopting digital presenters to deliver news, marking a significant shift in the country's media industry. On Wednesday, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma showcased Ankita, an AI-powered virtual anchor. 

The video highlighted Ankita delivering a detailed report on the latest updates from a recent Assam Cabinet meeting. Designed with remarkably human-like features, including a natural appearance and a fluent Assamese-speaking voice, Ankita presented the key decisions and discussions from the meeting with clarity and precision. 

"Meet Ankita, our AI anchor who brings to you the latest updates on the recent #AssamCabinet meeting. From approving the change of Dibrugarh Airport's name after Bhupen Hazarika to a time grant for tea garden workers, we took a host of decisions for the public," Mr Sarma wrote while sharing the video. 

Watch the video here:

Meet Ankita, our AI anchor who brings to you the latest updates on the recent #AssamCabinet meeting.

From approving change of Dibrugarh Airport's name after Bhupen Hazarika to one time grant for tea garden workers, we took a host of decisions for the public.

Drop in your views! pic.twitter.com/nIrrStQoC0

— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) May 14, 2025

The video has sparked mixed reactions. While some social media users expressed their excitement about AI's innovation and potential benefits, others were concerned about job displacement for human news anchors and journalists. One user wrote, "Loving how tech is being used to keep citizens informed. Go Ankita."

Another said, "Should have hired a real person at least this would have create a job opportunity." A third noted, "Ankita the AI anchor is such a cool concept – making governance updates so much more accessible."

AI Anchors And Newsreaders

These AI-driven avatars, powered by advanced natural language processing and realistic text-to-speech technologies, deliver news with human-like fluency, tone, and expression. Pioneered in countries like China, where Xinhua's AI anchor "Xin Xiaowei" debuted in 2018, the trend is spreading globally. AI anchors offer 24/7 availability, multilingual capabilities, and cost efficiency, eliminating the need for salaries or breaks. They can be customised to suit diverse audiences, adapting accents or appearances instantly.

While AI anchors are unlikely to fully replace humans soon, their integration is reshaping the industry, blending technology with journalism and challenging traditional notions of news delivery in an evolving digital era.