(Kuwait) A Kuwaiti media this week unveiled a virtual television host, generated by artificial intelligence, with the ambition of entrusting her with the presentation of a news bulletin in the Gulf country.

Dressed in a white v-neck t-shirt, covered with a black jacket, “Fedha” appeared on the Twitter account of the news site Kuwait News on Saturday, as part of a project still in the development phase. test.

“I am Fedha, the first presenter in Kuwait who works with artificial intelligence at Kuwait News. What kind of news do you prefer? Let’s listen to your opinions,” she said in classical Arabic.

The site, affiliated with Kuwait Times, the Gulf’s first English-language daily founded in 1961, is testing the potential of artificial intelligence to deliver “new and innovative content”, its editor told AFP. Deputy, Abdullah Boftain.

According to him, the presenter could in the future adopt the Kuwaiti accent and present a news bulletin on the Twitter account of Kuwait News, followed by more than 1.2 million subscribers.

“Fedha is a popular ancient Kuwaiti name that refers to silver, the metal. We always imagine robots in silver color and metal, so we combined the two,” said Abdullah Boftain.

As for the physical appearance of the presenter, blonde with light eyes, it reflects, according to him, the diversity of the population in this rich oil country, composed of Kuwaitis and expatriates.

“Fedha represents everyone,” he added.

His 13-second teaser video drew a lot of reactions on social media, including from journalists. “Our jobs are in danger. Will Fedha and her colleagues be our replacements in the near future? asked one of them.