You can now clone your voice

The Future. Voice cloning is no longer in the realm of science fiction. Thanks to a host of AI platforms, everyone from celebrities to average users have the ability to recreate their voice as a plug-and-play software. Looking past the potential for abuse that is inherent in the tech, AI voice cloning may soon play a vital role in advertising, podcast editing, or giving voice to digital avatars.

Siamese sounds
What if you could talk in more than one place?

• Recently, the concept of creating a clone of your voice has become a reality.
• Companies such as Resemble.AI, Respeecher, and Descript allow everyday users to create carbon copies of their voice for everything from ads to podcasts.
• Veritone is helping celebrities license their voices to brands for advertising purposes… with talent never having to enter a studio.

Most programs have users record themselves reading a pre-written script for roughly 30 minutes in order to collect all the data they need to recreate their voice. It’s not perfect yet, but the simplicity may generate mass appeal for the tech.

Tongue twisters
Society is still trying to distinguish between when voice cloning is a force for good or when it abuses its power.

• A doc about Anthony Bourdain recently used the tech to give voice to one of Bourdain’s letters, which was criticized as being done without his permission.
• Meanwhile, a doc about Val Kilmer recreated Kilmer’s voice from before he was treated for throat cancer and was praised for providing a unique solution.

Additionally, voice cloning opens the door to a variety of abuses from scammers, such as attempting to steal identities or framing innocent people of saying things they never did. Just like video deepfakes, the threat of misinformation will only increase as the tech enters the mainstream.

Tongue twisters
Society is still trying to distinguish between when voice cloning is a force for good or when it abuses its power.