Add news anchors to the list of people who should be worried about robots stealing their jobs.
This week, China’s state news agency Xinhua revealed a news anchor that appears human, but that was developed using artificial intelligence.
The newsperson — who speaks English in a video released by the news agency — was developed based on the voice and appearance of Zhango Zhao, another anchor at Xinhua. It was done in partnership with the Chinese search-engine company, Sogou.com, according to the company.
“The development of the media industry calls for continuous innovation and deep integration with the international advanced technologies,” the newsperson said.
The broadcasters debuted “English AI Anchor” on Thursday at the World Internet Conference in China.
Fears about what increased automation means for the workforce have been on the rise in recent years, with the National Bureau of Economic Research estimating that hundreds of thousands of jobs have been sidelined by automation in the U.S. in recent decades.
In 2017, the Robotics Industries Association estimated that 250,000 robots were being used in the U.S., the third-highest in the world behind Japan and China. A report published by McKinsey & Company last year indicated that as many as 800 million workers worldwide could be displaced by robots come 2030 — but that some skills are more susceptible to replacement than others. For instance, machines will likely be unable to replace humans in jobs that require managing people or any social interaction.
