These days, employees everywhere shutter at the words ‘artificial intelligence’. All over the news we hear of ways that automated systems could take the place of workers in a variety of industries. Are radio voice over artists safe? Find out below.
In the last half a century, the increase in global technological prowess has boomed loud across many industries. Every day there seems to be more and more capabilities computers and other tech have access to including machine learning, voice and facial recognition, and even text-to-sound (TTS).
For radio voice over artists, the rise of technology is bittersweet. One negative is the switch from manual craft in the arts to the use of automated systems. An example of this is the use of electronic voices in place of actual human voices for National Weather Service broadcasts since 2014. Also, some of the most successful and profitable movies of all time are animated films like The Lion King and Finding Nemo.
This escalating drift toward using AI and digital personas for entertainment could mean actors, especially voice over actors, could eventually find their industry ruled by robotic or computerized replacements. However, there is some good news to help ease the transition.
According to the Chief Technology Officer at DreamWorks, Ed Leonard, the industry does not see the rise of tech to be an actual threat to the actor’s craft. He advised that there is no replacing raw talent in entertainment and that technology is nowhere near human enough to fully replace actors. This is a fair point since while digital technology is getting more and more lifelike, like Amazon’s Alexa or Siri, there is still a distinct difference between those computerized voices and a real live person.
For instance, Siri is highly monotone and often doesn’t understand what I’m trying to say. So at least for now, it is easy to see that digital technology has its limits.
For the time being, innovation is actually more of a help to radio voice over talent than a hindrance. Digital recording can clean up voices, remove extra noises that take away from a final product, and help match real voices to computerized or animated stories. Even in areas that could be easily switched up like broadcasts, audiobooks, and the radio, studies show consumers prefer the voice of an actual person to a synthesized AI person.
If you are in need of a real human for radio voice over talent, listen to some of my demos and feel free to give me a call!
