Mendoza, Argentina – Diario UNO, a digital news outlet, has implemented an artificial intelligence tool called “Tuki” to automate the creation of draft news articles from audio and written sources, a move reflecting a broader trend of Latin American newsrooms integrating AI into daily operations. The initiative, supported by WAN-IFRA and OpenAI through the LATAM Newsroom AI Catalyst, aims to streamline workflows and free up journalists for more in-depth reporting.
The project originated from Diario UNO’s recognition of two key challenges: the inconsistent and individual utilize of AI tools by staff and the significant time spent on repetitive, low-value tasks like transcription and rewriting, often performed by experienced reporters. Tuki was conceived as a solution to both standardize AI usage and alleviate the burden of these tasks.
Initially designed to convert audio from Radio Nihuil into draft articles, Tuki’s functionality has expanded to accommodate various input formats and is now accessible to journalists across the entire organization. This expansion, however, presented organizational hurdles, requiring close collaboration between editorial and technical teams. According to those involved, successful implementation demanded a shift in organizational culture, viewing AI integration not merely as a technological upgrade but as a fundamental change in working practices.
Today, Tuki generates draft articles incorporating Diario UNO’s established style guide and editorial standards. A core principle guiding the tool’s development and deployment has been a “human in the loop” approach, ensuring that automation serves as an efficiency layer while preserving journalistic judgment and human editing as central components of the process. The primary outcome, according to Diario UNO, has been the systematization of AI use within the newsroom, transforming it from a fragmented, individual practice into a shared, structured process with defined rules and objectives.
The next phase of development focuses on scaling Tuki into a comprehensive editorial support platform, further reinforcing efficient and structured workflows. This initiative comes as artificial intelligence’s impact on journalism gains increasing attention across Latin America, with a recent UNESCO report highlighting growing discussion around the topic, as evidenced by the Montevideo Declaration on Artificial Intelligence and its Impact on Latin America. A report from LatAm Journalism Review also notes that Latin America is leading in mentions of journalism within AI-related legal frameworks.
WAN-IFRA’s involvement, as detailed in a recent report, emphasizes supporting newsrooms in identifying high-impact use cases for AI and building shared knowledge, rather than promoting specific tools. The organization’s focus is on helping media outlets formulate relevant questions and navigate the challenges of integrating AI responsibly, without compromising editorial focus or audience trust. The broader context, as outlined by WAN-IFRA, is that the primary challenge in AI adoption isn’t the technology itself, but rather its effective integration into existing newsroom structures and practices.
