ENCO to Add AI News Anchor to Qimera Virtual Production Set

ENCO virtual production system with a virtual anchor
(Image credit: ENCO)

NOVI, Mich.—During the 2024 NAB Show, ENCO will be showcasing an AI-driven virtual anchor delivering live news from a realistic 3D virtual news set. 

This innovative presentation will be produced live from a virtual production studio powered by Qimera AR/VR/MR systems in combination with generative AI technologies, ENCO reported. 

Attendees will be able to step inside this virtual production universe at ENCO’s booth (W1743) in the West Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center, taking place from April 14-17, 2024. 

“The convergence of AI with news production technology represents a significant step forward in that it introduces an automated way to create compelling, localized content in real-time,” said ENCO president Ken Frommert. “We fully expect this impressive technology to make a big impact in 2024 because it offers a broad, robust feature set with a simplified, intuitive user experience unseen in the marketplace.”

ENCO first unveiled their partnership with Qimera at NAB last year, where they debuted a complete virtual production in their booth. The AI virtual anchor is an exciting new innovation for this year’s exhibit, leveraging AI models to generate virtual human anchors that speak with human-sounding voices. These are generated by ENCO new SPECai generative AI text and voice creation application. 

More specifically, the Qimera virtual production workflow acquires and summarizes a news story, delivered as synthetic speech through the virtual anchor.

The Qimera virtual production environment accelerates the learning curve by removing all the complexity from the process. The underlying Qimera technology generates realistic, real-time graphical sets by harnessing its integrated Unreal Engine, NVIDIA GeForce graphics card, and 3D asset library. Other integrated features include virtual cameras, tracked/trackless camera systems, a 4-input switcher and DMX lighting controls.

As Qimera’s exclusive North American distributor, ENCO sells and markets Qimera’s virtual production technology and integrates it with ENCO’s automation, studio production and captioning product lines. This NAB virtual production studio experience is designed to call attention to the extensive products offered by ENCO and its partners. 

“Our 2024 NAB Show exhibit is a strong example of how ENCO blends the physical and digital worlds with AI to ignite groundbreaking creative possibilities,” Frommert added. “We are just getting started.”

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George Winslow

George Winslow is the senior content producer for TV Tech. He has written about the television, media and technology industries for nearly 30 years for such publications as Broadcasting & Cable, Multichannel News and TV Tech. Over the years, he has edited a number of magazines, including Multichannel News International and World Screen, and moderated panels at such major industry events as NAB and MIP TV. He has published two books and dozens of encyclopedia articles on such subjects as the media, New York City history and economics.