By Kelvin Ololo
The New Thoughts Media Support Foundation (NTMSF), also known as the Civic Innovation Center (CIC), has launched a groundbreaking Artificial Intelligence application named ToriAI, designed to help media practitioners and newsrooms tell stories from a distinctly Nigerian perspective.
The innovative tool, unveiled alongside others including Kohort, Connected Newsrooms, Falasa, and Citizens College was introduced during a one-day media conference themed: “Unlocking Nigeria’s AI Potentials for Media Sustainability and Democracy.” Held at the Bon Hotel, GRA, Ikeja, Lagos.
While addressing participants virtually, the Director of NTMSF, Mr. Seun Akinfolarin, said the conference was organized to educate and train journalists on the use of technological innovations for development, and to position the media at the forefront of global transformation.
Mr. Akinfolarin explained that ToriAI is designed to empower journalists, enable newsrooms to grow new audiences, deepen community engagement, translate text into multilingual audio, and unlock new revenue streams from a single story.
He said: “ToriAI is designed to transform text into audio, video, and local languages, while also converting news stories into multiple social media formats.”
Delivering the keynote address, the Chief Executive Officer of the Center for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) and Publisher of Premium Times, Mr. Dapo Olorunyomi, represented by Mr. Monsur Hussain, described ToriAI as a breakthrough tool rooted in Nigeria’s cultural identity.
He noted that “ToriAI is the solution because it understands our culture, norms, proverbs, and idioms,” while urging journalists to remain guided ethically, politically, and collectively as they adopt the tool in serving the public interest.
“The challenge before us is ensuring that AI becomes a force for inclusion rather than exclusion, for truth rather than manipulation, and for democracy rather than domination.”
A panel session featuring communication scholars, editors, and tech experts including Prof. Suleiman Yar’adua, Prof. Musa Aibinu, Dr. Olusola Ayoola, Dr. Aderonke Lawal, Dr. Kayode Odeyemi, Dr. Jibril Abdullah, Mr. Tajudeen Sulaiman, Ajibola Amzat, Mojeed Alabi, and Lanre Ogunkunle, explored the ethical and professional implications of integrating AI into the newsroom.
Panelists highlighted the need for editors to build an AI culture within newsrooms to strengthen fact-checking, ensure authenticity and accuracy, and equip journalists with the skills to utilize AI responsibly in their daily reportage.
In his closing remarks, the Coordinator of NTMSF, Mr. Habib Oladapo, expressed appreciation to participants for their contributions and urged them to embrace what he described as “a revolutionary epoch in Nigerian journalism.”
The conference brought together journalists, Editors, publishers, and tech experts from across Nigeria, providing a platform to share insights on harnessing Nigeria’s homegrown AI innovations for media sustainability and democratic advancement.
Highlights of the event included interactive sessions, panel discussions, a question and answer session, and a group photograph.