One topic is dominating the media industry’s agenda at the moment: AI.

AI opens the door to innovation and efficiency, yet the path to harnessing its power is far from smooth. 

That’s one reason why we’re holding our second AI Summit, on 6 December, in Lausanne. This is where Members will get together to discuss how they’re grappling with AI and to share insights on the best ways forward on issues like:

Defining Priorities and Investing Wisely 

For public service media (PSM), investing in AI is essential to remain competitive and relevant. But what should they invest in? The quality of AI technologies varies and determining where AI truly adds business value is one of the most frequently asked questions.

Some broadcasters are taking a more pragmatic approach, such as by prioritizing AI projects that simplify journalists' lives. Others have introduced structured processes to help prioritize AI projects from a methodological perspective. They are defining metrics to evaluate AI tools before integrating them into workflows, such as compatibility, model and data quality, explainability, stability and credibility of suppliers, and ethical considerations.

Many of the most relevant use cases for AI that we see remain in accessibility, multilingual content production, and archive management. 

Upholding Ethics and Values

One of the most pressing questions around AI is how to ensure its ethical and responsible use. Many of our Members have developed ethical guidelines for AI, which you can access in our members-only repository. 

When it comes to ethics, there are several priority considerations, including respect for intellectual property rights, clarity around terms of use, such as liability and attribution, and of course data protection. 

Furthermore, our broadcasters’ transparency imperative means audiences must be told when AI has been used in content creation. In all AI-driven workflows, human oversight is essential to keep control and mitigate any risk of bias, which undermines audience trust. 

Public service broadcasters’ whole purpose is to serve the public’s best interests, and their use of AI should enhance, and never compromise, that mission.

Building Effective AI Governance

Implementing AI at a strategic level requires robust governance. Many of our Members have set up multidisciplinary AI taskforces, often reporting directly to the CEO or board, though their precise roles, responsibilities, and workflows are still being defined.

Some broadcasters, including SR and BR, have taken the decisive step of appointing a Chief AI Officer to oversee AI initiatives and ensure alignment with organizational priorities. 

But, for many organizations, how to structure AI governance remains an open question.

Navigating Relationships with Big Tech and Third Parties

One of the most complex aspects of AI implementation for our Members is interaction with major tech companies and other third parties. Unauthorized use of data, lack of brand attribution, and limited control over how content is distributed and displayed are all big challenges.

As an organization, we are exploring solutions to protect our Members’ interests and fostering discussions to make sure that AI innovation and deployment serve the public good.

Workforce Planning

What skills will our workforce need in an AI-driven media landscape? What training and upskilling initiatives are required? And how will AI impact our organizational culture?

We’ll shortly be publishing the results of our new Member survey on this topic and will be discussing the outcomes at our AI Summit. But it’s clear we face a critical juncture in workforce planning and that training such as that offered by the EBU Academy’s School of AI is going to be essential as we look for new ways to enhance productivity and engage audiences.

Looking Forward

AI has the power to transform public service media for the better, but its implementation requires thoughtful, strategic reflection, ethical vigilance, and effective governance. 

Our goal is to ensure that AI enhances the core mission of public service broadcasting and strengthens it as a beacon of trust and integrity in a digital world.

Responsibility to use AI wisely and ethically rests on us all, which is why events like our AI Summit are important opportunities for the public service media community to share experiences, inspiration and answers on this ever-widening frontier.