Digital
Fremantle gets its cloud moment with AWS and PFT in the director’s seat
MUMBAI: Fremantle is stepping into the future with a bold new production upgrade this time, behind the scenes. The global content powerhouse has roped in Prime Focus Technologies (PFT) and Amazon Web Services (AWS) to build a slick, scalable, and AI-powered content supply chain platform that promises to make their operations as binge-worthy as their shows.
The new setup currently in the works isn’t just a digital spring-cleaning exercise. It’s a full-blown transformation, aiming to unify Fremantle’s workflows across international markets, speed up distribution, and give real-time visibility into content lifecycles. Think of it as streamlining the journey from storyboard to screen, with fewer traffic jams.
At the heart of this digital makeover is PFT’s Clear Smart MAM, a media asset management solution packed with “agentic AI” smarts. It’ll help Fremantle automatically enrich content with metadata, optimise workflows, and cut through operational clutter like a content butler with machine learning for manners.
Fremantle CEO for commercial and international, Jens Richter said, “A robust content supply chain that will cater to the dynamic business requirements of monetizing content is paramount, and we look forward to working with PFT and AWS to see what we can achieve together. This collaboration will provide us with the agility, visibility, speed and scalability required across Commercial and International, Digital and Global channels to streamline our media supply chain and digital processes.”
Prime Focus Technologies founder and global CEO Ramki Sankaranarayanan said, “Our offering is designed to meet the most demanding needs of global content studios like Fremantle. We’re thrilled to partner with them on this transformative journey and enable their vision of a modern, AI-powered supply chain that fuels creativity and revenue.”
AWS head of broadcast for media, and sport for UK at Andy Stephenson said, “We are proud to support Fremantle on its digital transformation journey. By harnessing technologies like cloud computing and AI, Fremantle will be able to drive innovation across its business, scale quickly, easily, and securely, and extract new value from its content.”
As streaming, syndication, and social media redefine how stories are told and sold, Fremantle’s cloud-powered leap is less about catching up and more about setting the pace. For a company with storytelling in its DNA, its supply chain is finally getting a plot twist of its own.
Digital
Ethical AI must benefit society, not dominate it, says WFEB chief Sanjay Pradhan at IAA event
At Mumbai event, ethics expert urges businesses and governments to shape AI responsibly
MUMBAI: Artificial intelligence may be racing ahead at lightning speed, but its direction must still be guided by human conscience. That was the central message delivered by Sanjay Pradhan, president of the World Forum for Ethics in Business (WFEB), during the latest edition of IAA Conversations held in Mumbai.
The session was organised by the International Advertising Association (IAA) and the Artificial Intelligence Association of India (AIAI) in association with The Free Press Journal at the Free Press House on 7 March. Addressing a packed audience, Pradhan called for stronger ethical leadership to ensure AI remains a tool that benefits humanity rather than one that governs it.
“Artificial intelligence has rapidly become one of the most powerful technologies humanity has created,” Pradhan said. “It is unlocking breakthroughs in medicine, science and creativity at a pace unimaginable just a few years ago.”
But he warned that the same technology carries serious risks. AI, he noted, can amplify disinformation faster than facts can travel, compromise privacy, deepen discrimination and disrupt millions of livelihoods. Referencing concerns raised by AI pioneers such as Geoffrey Hinton, often called the godfather of AI, Pradhan stressed that the real challenge is not whether AI will shape the world, but whether humans will shape it with ethics and wisdom.
Structuring his talk around four guiding questions, why, what, how and who, Pradhan introduced the audience to WFEB’s emerging AI Ethics Partnership, a global platform aimed at advancing responsible artificial intelligence. He outlined four priority concerns that demand urgent attention: disinformation, bias and discrimination, data privacy and job security.
To make the idea of ethical AI easier to grasp, Pradhan offered a simple metaphor. Ethical AI, he said, is like a three layered cake. The outer layer represents the visible value ethical AI creates for businesses and society. The middle layer is organisational culture that moves ethics from written codes to everyday practice. The innermost layer, however, is the most crucial, the conscience of individual leaders.
Drawing from Indian philosophical thought through WFEB co-founder Ravi Shankar, Pradhan noted that while artificial intelligence can reproduce stored knowledge, true intelligence is boundless and rooted in conscience, creativity and compassion. Practices such as breathwork and meditation, he suggested, can help leaders develop the calm clarity needed for ethical decision making.
The event also featured a discussion with Maninder Adityaraj Singh, chief of staff and head of innovation at Rediffusion Brand Solutions Pvt Ltd, and Yash Johri, lawyer, Supreme Court of India.
Opening the session, IAA India chapter president Abhishek Karnani, highlighted the need for industries to understand and engage with AI responsibly.
“AI has to be befriended and understood,” added Rediffusion managing director and AIAI national convenor Sandeep Goyal. “Its ethical use will determine whether it becomes a friend or a foe.”
As AI continues to reshape industries and societies, Pradhan ended with a simple but powerful call to action. Businesses, governments and individuals must work together to ensure that the algorithms shaping the future reflect human values rather than just cold logic.
