The first phase of the South Asia Newsroom AI Catalyst took place in New Delhi on 5 and 6 February, focusing on helping the participating publishers define and develop AI-driven projects for their newsrooms. They outlined their project goals through a structured learning process, which will be further refined with coaching sessions in February and March.
The first cohort includes 16 leading news organisations from across the region, spanning legacy print brands and digital-first platforms, underscoring the industry’s commitment to AI-driven newsroom transformation.
Participating news organisations will create prototype projects that will be iterated upon in the coming weeks. The programme will culminate in a final presentation in April in New Delhi.
Programme structure
The South Asia Newsroom AI Catalyst will run across two three-month accelerators, each featuring a structured curriculum with weekly modules, hands-on workshops, and a prototyping hackathon. The programme begins with an in-person workshop, followed by bi-weekly mentoring and peer-led sessions.
Key modules
- AI news landscape: Essentials and opportunities
- Use cases for AI in journalism
- Building an AI strategy
- AI-powered content generation
- Data-driven news production
- AI for audience insights and engagement
- Workflow integration and change management
- Measuring AI success and ROI
- Monetisation and sustainability with AI
- The future of journalism with AI
“The media landscape is evolving rapidly, and AI presents both challenges and opportunities for newsrooms,” said Vincent Peyrègne, CEO of WAN-IFRA. “With the support of OpenAI, we aim to empower South Asian newsrooms to harness AI responsibly and effectively, ensuring high-quality journalism remains sustainable.”
“At OpenAI, we’re proud to support newsrooms around the world as they explore how AI can support quality journalism,” said Pragya Misra, India public policy lead, OpenAI. “The launch of the AI Catalyst programme in Delhi marks an important step in our collaboration with WAN-IFRA, helping news publishers from across South Asia unlock new capabilities and contribute to a healthy and sustainable ecosystem for the future of journalism.”
The South Asia Newsroom AI Catalyst is part of a global accelerator programme that supports 128 newsrooms across Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and South Asia. This initiative reflects WAN-IFRA’s ongoing commitment to equipping news organisations with the tools needed to navigate the future of journalism.
Contact and Inquiries
Magdoom Mohamed, Managing Director South Asia, WAN-IFRA. Email: magdoom.mohamed@wan-ifra.org
Thai Anban Chokkalingam, Email: thai.anban@wan-ifra.org.
The call for applications for a second Newsroom AI Catalyst in South Asia is scheduled for June 2025.