Channel 4's alternative Christmas message will this year be generated entirely by artificial intelligence, the broadcaster has announced. The message will be delivered by Ameca, one of the world's most advanced robots. The broadcast, which will run after the King's annual Christmas message at 3pm, will see the robot speak about the highs and lows of 2022. During the address Ameca will also respond to questions about humans. She is due to say that human-kind should be "neither happy nor sad" about the past year and "take it as a learning opportunity, a chance to change the way we think about the world and a reminder to help those in need whenever we can".

England's BBC Channel 4 is going have an AI robot named Ameca provide the alternative Christmas message to King Charles' official royal remarks. A dystopian humanoid cyborg is set to give us the seasons' greetings this year on Channel 4. According to a report from Deadline, the AI robot, whose name is Ameca will be delivering alternate remarks to King Charles III's annual Royal Christmas message which will broadcast on its usual home on Channel 1. The robot was developed by Engineered Arts, a developing firm in Cornwall, England. The AI for Ameca is apparently set to deliver remarks which seek to calm the nation and the world at large, by reassuring us that 2022 was a "learning opportunity, a chance to change the way we think about the world and a reminder to help those in need whenever we can." This sounds suspiciously like some kind of terrifying cyborg threat, especially without hearing the accompanying Apple Maps voice delivering the statement, but Channel 4 assures us the robot supports the human race and loves a good laugh when times get tough.

Fox News Flash top entertainment and celebrity headlines are here. Check out what's clicking today in entertainment. Britain's Channel 4 last week produced a stunningly real-looking parody video of Queen Elizabeth's annual Christmas Day message that the network claims highlights the dangers of "deepfake" technology. Channel 4 has been releasing its own "alternative" Christmas message for nearly 30 years and decided to make a deepfake video this year as a warning about the technology's potential dangers. The technique of manipulating someone's face and voice in a "deepfake" video is "more easy than most people would think," the channel said in a separate video showing how it synthetically recreated the queen with the help of actress Debra Stephenson.

London (CNN)A fake Queen Elizabeth danced across TV screens on Christmas as part of a "deepfake" speech aired by a British broadcaster. The real British monarch traditionally delivers a Christmas Day speech aired around the world. But her speech on Friday at 3 p.m. was followed by a digitally-created fake of the Queen, aired on Channel 4 and voiced by an actor, warning viewers to question "whether what we see and hear is always what it seems." Channel 4 said the video was created as a "stark warning" about technology and the proliferation of fake news. The broadcaster said the video was supposed to offer "a stark warning about the advanced technology that is enabling the proliferation of misinformation and fake news in a digital age."

Just about every year since 1952, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom has delivered a Christmas address to the masses, and 2020 will be no different. Shortly after she gives her remarks, however, British broadcaster Channel 4 will air an "alternative message" from the Queen, brought to life by deepfake software and an actress with a pseudo-regal affect. "On the BBC, I haven't always been able to speak plainly and from the heart," the "Queen" said in a promo posted to the broadcaster's Twitter. "So I'm grateful to Channel 4 for giving me the opportunity to say whatever I like without anyone putting words in my mouth." There's relatively little risk that anyone would look at Channel 4's deepfake and regard it as a genuine message from the Queen.

Channel 4 has sparked controversy and debate with a deepfake video of the Queen as an alternative to her traditional festive broadcast, to be aired on Christmas Day. The broadcaster will show a five-minute video in which a digitally altered version of the Queen shares her reflections on the year, including the departure of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as senior royals and the Duke of York's involvement with the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. The deepfake Queen, voiced by the actor Debra Stephenson, can also be seen performing a dance routine from social media platform TikTok. Channel 4 said the broadcast was intended to give a "stark warning" about the threat of fake news in the digital era, with its director of programmes, Ian Katz, describing the video as a "a powerful reminder that we can no longer trust our own eyes". Some experts suggested the broadcast might make the public think deepfake technology was more commonly used than is the case.

You won't have to go out of your way to catch Queen Elizabeth II's annual Christmas Day message if you have an Echo (or a similar device) on hand. The Guardian reports that the Queen's message will be available on smart speakers for the first time through Amazon's Alexa. So long as you live in an English-speaking country, you can ask Alexa to "play the Queen's Christmas day message" after 3PM GMT (10AM ET) and get the inspiring speech while you're finishing a holiday meal. Google Assistant and HomePod users are out of luck for the on-demand message, but you can always stream BBC Radio 4 on your speaker to get the live broadcast. It's a relatively late move when smart speakers have been around for several years.

We live in a world that is increasingly dependent on elaborate networks: electricity grids, air traffic control, international finance, just-in-time delivery, globally dispersed manufacturing, and so forth. Unless these networks are highly resilient, their benefits could be outweighed by catastrophic (albeit rare) breakdown--real-world analogues of what happened to the financial system in 2008. Our cities would be paralysed without electricity. Supermarket shelves would be empty within days if supply chains were disrupted. Air travel can spread a pandemic worldwide within days.