Project Overview

KekeNews is an innovative application designed to transform Albanian news articles into engaging TikTok videos. By utilizing advanced technologies, it automates the content creation process, making it accessible and enjoyable for a wider audience.

Detailed Description

Goal: Create a Progressive Web App (PWA) that automates the conversion of news articles into subtitled videos, optimized for social media platforms like TikTok, with a focus on accessibility and user engagement.

Solution: Developed a fully integrated solution using cutting-edge technologies and cloud services to streamline the content production pipeline, enabling rapid scaling and customization of news content for diverse audiences.

Technologies Used:

• Languages & Frameworks: C#, Blazor
• Video Processing: FFmpeg
• Text-to-Speech: Microsoft TTS
• AI Summarization: ChatGPT API
• UI Components: MudBlazor
• Cloud Services: Azure Functions, Cosmos DB, Azure Blob Storage, Azure Static Web Apps

Features and Functionality

• Serverless Architecture: Ensures high availability and scalability using Azure Container Apps and Azure Static Apps.
• Custom Fonts in Azure Functions: Enhanced visual consistency across generated video content by overcoming technical challenges of embedding custom fonts.
• Authentication: Seamless user authentication with Azure AD B2C for secure and effortless access.

Process and Methodology

1. News Discovery: Articles are curated and filtered to match user preferences.

2. Article Selection: Users select preferred news pieces for video conversion.

3. Summarization and Narration: The ChatGPT API summarizes the article, and Azure’s Text-to-Speech service generates human-like voiceovers.

4. Subtitle Generation: Custom subtitles are generated to match the spoken content, ensuring clear and understandable videos.

5. Template Selection: Users choose from a variety of templates to enhance the video’s visual appeal.

6. Final Video Creation: A beautifully crafted video is produced, ready to be shared on social media platforms. [Video]

Performance and Metrics

The design and deployment of KekeNews utilize a serverless architecture to ensure high availability and scalability. The integration of Azure Container Apps and Azure Static Apps optimizes deployment and hosting. Overcoming the technical challenge of embedding custom fonts in Azure Functions required innovative solutions to enhance visual consistency across generated video content.

Lessons Learned

Reflecting on the development of KekeNews, I learned the importance of seamless integration of multiple cloud services to achieve a streamlined and scalable solution. The project also highlighted the value of focusing on user engagement through personalized content and accessibility features.

Future Improvements

Plans for future enhancements include expanding the range of news sources, improving AI summarization accuracy, adding more customization options for video templates, and adding custom voices.