The head of UK taxpayer-funded BBC has big plans for the national broadcaster with an enthusiastic deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) topping the to-do list.
In an address to the Royal Television Society on Tuesday, director general Tim Davie laid out the “future direction of the BBC and its role for the U.K.,” which he revealed would embrace new technology in all its forms.
“We will proactively deploy AI on our terms, always holding on to our published principles,” he said. “Never compromising human creative control, supporting rights holders and sustaining our editorial standards, but proactively launching tools that help us build relevance.”
Davie added the near 100-year-old institution is now working “with a number of major tech companies” on “BBC-specific pilots,” the most promising of which would be deployed in the coming months, Variety reports.
Britain’s Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Britain’s Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall listen to BBC Director-General Tim Davie during their visit to the BBC World Service, in London, on April 28, 2022, for its 90th anniversary. (HANNAH MCKAY/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
The broadcaster’s ambition for AI is “significant”, claimed Davie, who said they wanted to use it to in the fact-checking of sources, translation and reformatting, while offering more tailored services.
“Supporting this, we are developing unique ethical algorithms that dramatically increase personalization but are not simply driven by the narrowing of an individual’s recommendations,” he said.
“We want to keep other factors in play like serendipity; curiosity; and an interest in what our BBC editors may judge to be important stories.”
Davie’s public ambitions for AI came barely one week after the BBC said it will stop using AI for Doctor Who promotion after receiving complaints from viewers.
The BBC’s marketing teams used the tech “as part of a small trial” to help draft some text for two promotional emails and mobile notifications, according to its complaints website, which was intended to highlight Doctor Who programming on the BBC.
But the corporation received complaints over the reports that it was using generative AI, it added, per a Deadline report.
Yinka Bokinni with Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson as Ncuti Gatwa illuminates The London Eye in tribute to his new title role in “Doctor Who” at London Eye on December 11, 2023 in London, England. (Kate Green/Getty Images)
“We followed all BBC editorial compliance processes and the final text was verified and signed-off by a member of the marketing team before it was sent,” the BBC said. “We have no plans to do this again to promote Doctor Who.”
The BBC didn’t say how many complaints it received but they are likely to have been in a sufficient number to spark the immediate public backdown.