A Polish radio station has stirred controversy by dismissing its journalists and relaunching this week with AI-generated “presenters. ” After laying off its staff, OFF Radio Krakow introduced what it calls “the first experiment in Poland in which journalists …are virtual characters created by AI. ” Located in southern Poland, the station aims to engage younger audiences with its three avatars discussing cultural, artistic, and social topics, including LGBTQ+ issues. “Is artificial intelligence an opportunity or a threat to media, radio, and journalism?We will seek answers to this question, ” stated the station's director, Marcin Pulit. The move gained national attention when journalist and film critic Mateusz Demski, who recently hosted a show on the station, published an open letter on Tuesday condemning “the replacement of employees with artificial intelligence. ” He described this action as a dangerous precedent that could lead to a future where experienced media professionals and creative workers are replaced by machines. Demski reported that over 15, 000 people had signed the petition by Wednesday morning and received calls from hundreds of individuals, many of whom are young and opposed to such an experiment. Having worked at OFF Radio Krakow since February 2022, conducting interviews with Ukrainians fleeing war, Demski was let go in August along with around a dozen other journalists.

He expressed his shock over the situation, particularly since the station is publicly funded. Pulit asserted that no journalists were dismissed due to AI, but rather because the station's listenership was “close to zero. ” Krzysztof Gawkowski, the minister of digital affairs and deputy prime minister, commented on Tuesday, stating he had read Demski’s letter and emphasized the need for regulations regarding AI. “While I am a supporter of AI development, I believe that certain boundaries are increasingly being crossed, ” he wrote on X. “The widespread use of AI should benefit people, not work against them!” On Tuesday, the station aired an “interview” conducted by an AI-generated presenter using a voice mimicking Wisława Szymborska, a Nobel Prize-winning Polish poet who passed away in 2012. Michał Rusinek, president of the Wisława Szymborska Foundation responsible for the poet’s legacy, told broadcaster TVN that he agreed to allow the use of Szymborska’s name for the program, noting that she had a sense of humor and would likely have enjoyed it.