Episode Summary
SNK's AI news anchor drives its stock price up, creating enemies for Man Wai-sam, who starts building alliances to fight back. After a key anchor and her followers defect from SNK to join Man Wai-sam's team, a real-world breaking news event pits Man Wai-sam's traditional reporting against SNK's AI. Man Wai-sam's experience easily wins, proving the algorithm can't beat a real journalist.
Spoiler Alert
The AI Arms Race Heats Up
SNK's Stock Goes Wild
George and Cathy are all-in on their new AI project. They put the youngest intern, Siu Tin, in charge of it. The AI uses Man Wai-sam and George Leung’s faces to read the news. The public loves it. This whole AI gimmick sends SNK News's stock through the roof.
Mrs. Fong is not happy that George went rogue with this plan. But she sees the stock price. She can't complain too much. She just tells him to run things by her first from now on.
Remember Kelly? She’s the one Man Wai-sam fired. Now she's a stock analyst. She spends her time trashing Man Wai-sam on air. She says Man Wai-sam is washed up. Then she tells everyone to buy SNK stock. Even Ma Ka-ming gets tempted by the soaring price and buys some shares. Man Wai-sam warns him that SNK is playing with fire. She says the whole thing is going to crash and burn eventually.
George is also getting friendly with Mr. Liu and Kelly. The three of them have one thing in common. They all hate Man Wai-sam. They start meeting up, clearly plotting some kind of revenge.
Man Wai-sam Starts Fighting Back
Hilary goes to her boss, Fung. She suggests the government should create some rules about AI using people's images. Fung completely dismisses her. He thinks she's just trying to grab the spotlight for herself. The head of the tech bureau, Yik Tong, happens to walk by. Fung tells him the news department is creating a new AI specialist role. He says he'll be the one to manage it.
Man Wai-sam gets a call from Pak Shu-wan. Her company is taking a hit because of SNK's stock boom. She tells Man Wai-sam to fix this mess. If she doesn't, she’ll pull her funding from Man Wai-sam's new platform. Man Wai-sam looks closer at the AI news reports. She notices there's no director credited. She figures George must have a tech whiz hidden somewhere.
So, Man Wai-sam goes to Hilary. She proposes they work together to fight SNK's copyright theft. She points out that Hilary's face could be the next one the AI steals. Man Wai-sam suggests they hold a joint international conference on the issue. Hilary hates Man Wai-sam’s bossy attitude. But she knows Man Wai-sam is right. She agrees to start planning, mostly to protect her own brand.
A Battle on Two Fronts
The Defectors
Over at SNK, Cathy holds a morning meeting. She announces they will continue using the AI for news broadcasts. One of the anchors, Sai Man-chi, has had enough. She says the company doesn't respect its employees. She quits on the spot. Then she and a few other anchors loyal to Man Wai-sam go join her team.
Man Wai-sam is upfront with them. She tells them she can't pay them right now. They don't care. They say they're ready to get through the hard times together. Man Wai-sam asks them who is running the AI at SNK. Sai Man-chi tells her nobody knows. Only George and Cathy have access to the live broadcast. No one else can get near the operation.
Cathy's Crisis of Conscience
Siu Tin's AI tech keeps pushing SNK to new heights. Cathy visits him in his secret office. He has a new assistant now, Lau Chun-pong. Siu Tin asks for a credit on the broadcast. He wants his name on his work. Cathy just gives him a bunch of excuses and avoids the question.
Later, Cathy is back in the studio alone. She pulls up the AI version of George Leung on the screen. She starts talking to it like he's an old friend. She questions everything she's doing. She says Man Wai-sam’s big reform was supposed to stop anchors from fighting each other. That part worked. But now, she feels like her job as a journalist has lost its meaning.
The Real World vs. The Algorithm
Man Wai-sam Shows Them How It's Done
An explosion happens out in the Sai Kung sea area. Man Wai-sam gets the news and immediately drives to the scene. She tells her team member Lau Yim to handle the live feed. Man Wai-sam knows the cops there. She gets a direct interview and lands the first-hand scoop.
Cathy wants to send a real reporter from SNK. But George overrules her. He decides to use the AI to report live from the scene. He sends Siu Tin and his assistant with all their gear.
Man Wai-sam is just faster. She also has an incredible memory for past events in Hong Kong. She beats the AI by a mile. The area is crowded with media, so the signal is terrible. The AI broadcast feed cuts out. SNK has to switch to a backup plan. By then, Man Wai-sam's platform has already broken the story and taken the headline.
As Man Wai-sam is leaving, she sees the SNK equipment van. She just stares at it for a long moment. Inside the van, Siu Tin is a nervous wreck. He knows what he's doing isn't right.
