Working together
The Center for Artificial Intelligence Research Nepal (CAIR-Nepal), Tech Journos Forum (TJF), and Sunway College Kathmandu have established a tripartite collaboration to research and develop an AI-enabled fact-checking system for Nepal. The collaboration brings together expertise in artificial intelligence, journalism, research, and education to address the growing challenges posed by misinformation, disinformation, manipulated media, and AI-generated content.
About the Collaboration
The collaboration focuses on developing technologies to support the verification of news and public information in Nepal. The proposed system will initially support Nepali and English and will be designed to process text, images, and audiovisual content.
The initiative will explore capabilities including factual claim identification, claim matching, evidence and source retrieval, and evidence-based assessment. The system will be developed around a human-in-the-loop approach in which artificial intelligence supports rather than replaces professional editorial judgment. Final assessments intended for publication or broadcast will remain subject to review by qualified editors and fact-checkers.
Roles of the Collaborating Organizations
CAIR-Nepal leads the research and technology development of the initiative, including system architecture, artificial intelligence and machine learning, language-processing and knowledge technologies, software infrastructure, testing, and evaluation.
Tech Journos Forum (TJF) contributes journalism and editorial expertise, supports the development of fact-checking and verification criteria, helps identify relevant misinformation and disinformation cases, coordinates engagement with journalists and media organizations, and supports testing within practical newsroom environments.
Sunway College Kathmandu supports the participation of faculty members, researchers, developers, and students in research, prototyping, testing, and validation. The collaboration also creates opportunities to connect academic research, student projects, and training activities with practical challenges at the intersection of artificial intelligence and journalism.
Responsible and Transparent AI
Responsible AI and human oversight are central to the collaboration. The initiative places particular emphasis on the protection of personal information, confidential journalistic sources, and other sensitive information.
The system will also emphasize transparency and provenance, including the ability to retain information about the sources and evidence used, the origins of analyzed content, and the basis for assessments where appropriate. The objective is to develop AI-assisted verification technologies that are evidence-driven, traceable, and suitable for professional human review.
From Research to Practical Impact
The collaboration combines AI-assisted analysis, evidence retrieval, language and knowledge technologies, provenance and transparency mechanisms, and human editorial oversight to support more effective information verification.
While the initial focus is Nepal, the research and technological approaches developed through the initiative may provide a foundation for future adaptation to other languages and information environments while preserving the importance of local linguistic, cultural, and journalistic context.
Media Coverage
The tripartite collaboration and AI-enabled fact-checking initiative have received coverage across national technology, business, financial, and general news media in Nepal.
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