A former editor of Cycling News has launched a digital media brand built to rethink the economics of specialist publishing, unveiling a “one-person newsroom” powered by generative AI.
Velora, created by Peter Stuart with co-founder Danny Bellion, has launched in beta after a five-week build. The project offers another live test – similar to Tomorrow’s Publisher – of how far automation can streamline reporting and production while keeping editorial judgment in human hands.
Stuart and Bellion, previously head of AI at fintech firm Capital on Tap, designed the platform so Stuart can operate as the sole editor while sustaining output on par with a small reporting team. The aim is not to mass-produce copy but to remove administrative overhead and leave more time for original reporting.
The system runs on a proprietary human-in-the-loop workflow developed by Bellion. It gathers and ranks news from hundreds of outlets, team sites and social feeds, identifies emerging topics and produces research briefs and outlines.
Once Stuart selects a story, the engine drafts copy for him to refine and check. It also manages the heavy lifting of digital publishing: verifying facts, selecting images, writing alt text, inserting internal links and uploading articles to the CMS. Stuart can publish by sending copy through Slack or email.
Stuart, who left Future’s Cycling News last month, says the goal is to counter low-quality AI aggregators by combining speed with human editing. “Anything with my byline has human involvement at every stage , and is always edited and signed off by me,” said Stuart in a launch statement on LinkedIn.
The site serves as a beta for Velora Digital, the underlying technology the founders hope to extend into other sports verticals. They are also exploring a white-label model for publishers seeking to cut costs without lowering standards.
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