New Danish news outlet Y puts AI at heart of journalism

Denmark’s new news outlet Y is due to launch Tuesday, with plans to use artificial intelligence across almost every stage of news production, DR reports.

Y aims to be a free, general news service focused particularly on Danish politics, international affairs and business. Artificial intelligence will be used in developing story ideas, selecting sources, producing and distributing content. Editors will conduct interviews at first and remain responsible for the published journalism.

“An editor is involved all the way through, choosing the angle, prompting how it should be, rewriting it and adding things,” editor-in-chief Michael Dyrby told DR. Dyrby, a former editor-in-chief at TV 2 and B.T., leads the new outlet.

Known as Project Y, the venture says it will go beyond adding a chatbot to a news website. It plans to experiment with fresh angles on current events, debate and what its editors call “anti-Jante Law” stories about people doing good things who deserve recognition.

The outlet will initially publish written articles and audio versions. Video and more advanced personalisation are planned for later. All content will be free, but Dyrby said advertising alone would not be enough to fund the business; new products, including ones aimed at businesses, are expected to contribute over time.

Aske Kammer, a lecturer at Roskilde University’s Centre for News Research who studies innovation in news media, said he would wait to see the journalism before judging the project. He said a key question was how much original reporting Y would produce, rather than material derived from other outlets.

Kammer said Y could have potential if it creates independent journalism and uses technology to deliver stories in different formats for different audiences. But he also noted that producing multiple versions of a story can be resource-intensive for traditional newsrooms, while media users are generally sceptical of AI-created content. He said he was doubtful about the prospects for a sustainable business.

Dyrby acknowledged that the outlet would face problems as it develops. Y has yet to meet its readers and aims eventually to produce 40 to 50 articles a day. It has a centre-right outlook, he said, but is independent of political parties.

Y is scheduled to go live at 1 p.m. Tuesday.