AI Tech to Replicate Al Michaels’ Voice for Summer season Olympics

As AI expertise continues to develop, some firms are being artistic when leveraging its capabilities.

On Wednesday, NBC announced it’s going to use AI expertise to copy the voice of the inimitable sports activities announcer Al Michaels to roll out, “Your Each day Olympic Recap on Peacock.”

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The 2024 Summer season Olympics are slated to start on July 27 in Paris, France, and can finish on August 11. The complete occasion will air on NBC.

The brand new program permits spectators to curate playlists with recaps of the Summer season Video games they love essentially the most, narrated by the AI model of Michaels’ voice.

^{Al Michaels seems on from the sideline previous to an NFL soccer recreation between the Tennessee Titans and the Pittsburgh Steelers (Cooper Neill/Getty Photos)}

“After I was approached about this, I used to be skeptical however, clearly, curious,” Michaels stated in a company release. “Then I noticed an indication detailing what they’d in thoughts. I stated, ‘I am in.'”

CNN confirmed that Michaels will likely be compensated for his involvement.

NBC estimates that over seven million totally different variations of the recaps might exist, given the 5,000 hours of anticipated Olympic protection throughout the occasion.

Michaels has cemented himself as a legend in sports activities broadcasting, working 9 Olympic Video games over the course of his profession for each NBC and ABC Sports activities.

He’s additionally identified for one of the crucial iconic play-calling broadcasts in sports activities. Because the U.S. hockey staff defeated the Soviet Union within the 1980 Olympics in Lake Placid, he screamed: “Do you imagine in miracles? Sure!”

Michaels’ willingness to take part in an AI collab is a pivot from different public figures who’ve fought in opposition to the expertise’s capacity to mimic an individual’s voice and likeness.

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Simply final month, Scarlett Johansson threatened legal action in opposition to OpenAI for utilizing a voice in a brand new chatbot that was “eerily related” to her personal — after she had already denied the corporate’s request to make use of her voice.