News Broadcasting
NDTV announces three CEO appointments
MUMBAI: NDTV announced the appointment of three leaders to head the group’s new growth ventures.
Vikram Chandra has been appointed as the CEO and managing director of NDTV Networks PLC, a 100% subsidiary incorporated in United Kingdom. Smeeta Chakrabarti will serve as the CEO of NDTV Lifestyle Ltd and Rahul Deshpande will take on the mandate of CEO of NDTV Labs ltd, the software and technology company.
In his role as CEO of NDTV Networks, Chandra will be responsible for the group’s new business initiatives worldwide comprising entertainment, lifestyle, convergence, outsourcing, new channels set up in different countries and software/technology development. Chandra will report to the CEO of the NDTV Group KVL Narayan Rao and to the Board of Directors of NDTV Networks.
Chandra has been leading the company’s growth initiatives for the past one year and has played a significant role in incubating several of these businesses. He has served as CEO of ndtv.com, the company’s internet and mobile content operations and as Managing Editor of NDTV Profit, the business news channel.Chandra will continue as an anchor and senior journalist on NDTV Profit.
The group also announced the CEO of NDTV Lifestyle Ltd Smeeta Chakrabarti. NDTV Lifestyle will be responsible for launching new channels under the lifestyle genre.
Smeeta has been with NDTV since its incorporation 18 years ago and will continue to carry out her group level responsibilities as head of operations for the NDTV Group.
Rahul Deshpande has been appointed the CEO of NDTV Labs ltd. NDTV Labs will develop market and sell software and technology products and solutions created by in-house specialists that Deshpande will lead.
Deshpande was earlier CTO of NDTV and has been heading engineering and IT for over 12 years.
The group had announced the appointed of NDTV Group CEO KVL Narayan Rao earlier in the month.
News Broadcasting
India Today Group debuts AI anchor ‘Sutra’ at AI Impact Summit 2026
Sutra aims to simplify live policy debates using sovereign AI models
NEW DELHI: India Today Group has unveiled Sutra, an AI-driven news anchor designed to deliver real-time, contextual reporting, marking the group’s latest push to integrate artificial intelligence into mainstream journalism.
The AI anchor was introduced at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi and developed in collaboration with BharatGen, with the initiative showcased by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
India Today Group said Sutra is built to navigate complex policy discussions and fast-moving developments by synthesising information into concise, accessible insights, aimed at narrowing the gap between high-level debates and public understanding. The AI anchor was used to surface live takeaways from key sessions at the summit.
India Today Group chief AI officer Nilanjan Das, said the project was focused on clarity and accessibility without diluting editorial rigour. He added that working with BharatGen aligned the group’s AI ambitions with India’s broader push towards sovereign technology capabilities.
BharatGen CEO Rishi Bal, said the partnership reflected a shift from basic automation towards deeper contextual intelligence in media. He emphasised the importance of indigenous, multimodal AI models capable of understanding Indian languages, regional dialects and cultural nuance, particularly as AI-driven news formats gain traction.
The launch positions India Today Group among the first major Indian media houses to deploy an AI anchor backed by home-grown technology, underscoring a growing convergence between journalism, public policy and sovereign AI infrastructure.
