Nanyang Siang Pau

Nanyang Siang Pau is one of Malaysia’s mainstream Chinese-language media organisations, with deep readership in the local business community. Rechner Media served as its technology partner to develop an AI avatar, AI voice model and AI news-presenting format for 商潮, its financial news channel.

Business news moves faster than video production. A presenter-led segment means booking the presenter, the studio, the camera and audio crew, then post-production — a chain of coordination that has to complete before a market story goes stale. Nanyang wanted to lift that ceiling on output without giving up the credibility and editorial character expected of an established masthead.

We built the AI presenter using the likeness and voice of Rechner Media’s PR Director, Ms. Shin Yin. As a former RTM Mandarin news presenter, Shin Yin brought an actual broadcast background to the project — so the avatar was grounded in a real, credible news delivery style rather than assembled from a generic model.

We used AI video and voice-modelling technology to reproduce her appearance and speech in a controlled digital format, capable of delivering approved scripts without returning to a studio for each video. The boundary was set from the start: the AI is the delivery layer. Scripts, facts, editorial judgement and the decision to publish stay with Nanyang’s journalists and editors.

• AI avatar development
• Mandarin AI voice cloning
• News-presenting format and on-screen treatment
• Human-in-the-loop editorial controls

We built the workflow that carries an approved script through to a publishable video. Once editorial content is confirmed, the voice model generates the Mandarin narration and the avatar presents it on screen. Supporting graphics, captions and visual elements are added for distribution across Nanyang’s website and social channels — a consistent presentation style across every video, produced at something closer to the speed of the news cycle.

The format suits timely financial updates, corporate announcements and brand stories, interview and event highlights, and short-form video for social platforms.

Nanyang introduced 商潮 and its AI presenter publicly at the Nanyang Golden Eagle Award 2025 launch on 23 May 2025.

The channel now has a repeatable route from approved copy to finished video. Instead of every segment starting with a filming session, editorial content moves straight into production — letting the newsroom respond to business developments quickly while holding a consistent visual and audio identity.