OpenAI just announced that it recently conducted a small-scale preview of a new tool called Voice Engine. This is a voice cloning technology that can mimic any speaker by analyzing a 15-second audio sample. The company says it generates “natural-sounding speech” with “emotive and realistic voices.” The technology is based on the company’s pre-existing text-to-speech API and it has been in the works since 2022. OpenAI has already been using a version of the toolset to power the preset voices available in the current text-to-speech API and the Read Aloud feature. There are a bunch of samples on the company’s official blog and they sound eerily close to the real thing. I encourage you to give them a listen and imagine the possibilities, both good and bad. OpenAI says they see this technology being useful for reading assistance, language translation and helping those who suffer from sudden or degenerative speech conditions. The company brought up a Brown University pilot program that helped a patient with speech impairment issues by creating a Voice Engine clone pulled from audio recorded for a school project. Despite the potential benefits, bad actors would certainly abuse this technology to engage in some serious deepfake tomfoolery, which is already a problem. With this in mind, Voice Engine isn’t quite ready for prime time, as there are serious privacy concerns that must be met before a full rollout. OpenAI acknowledges that this tech has “serious risks, which are... Continue reading at 'Engadget'
[ Engadget | 2024-03-29 19:03:56 UTC ]
Why do some audiobooks have two versions with different or same narrator? Here’s what to do if undecided on picking an audiobook version. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2021-02-15 11:37:00 UTC ]
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Richard Armitage, Sheila Atim and Joseph Fiennes are starring in five new audiobook adaptations of stories from 2000 AD, including Judge Dredd and Halo Jones. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-02-14 17:22:53 UTC ]
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Audiobook company RBmedia has acquired Booka, a Barcelona-based audiobook publishing company, and its full catalog of Spanish language titles. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-02-11 05:00:00 UTC ]
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The digital distributor reports a rise in audiobook titles of 123 percent in 2020 over the previous year. Print-on-demand advanced 18 percent. The post Germany-Based Bookwire in 2020: Titles Up 11 Percent Over 2019 appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2021-02-08 05:46:46 UTC ]
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Adjoa Andoh, who plays Lady Danbury in the hit Netflix series "Bridgerton", is reading the audiobook for An Ordinary Wonder by Buki Papillon, out with Dialogue Books in March. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-02-08 01:26:23 UTC ]
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Stephen King is publishing a new thriller with Hodder in August 2021, Billy Summers. The book–about a unique hitman, "a good guy in a bad job”–has been billed as “part war story, part love letter to small town America and the people who live there”. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-01-31 23:25:01 UTC ]
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“Much of what has been created to give purpose to lonely, empty hours will not be seen by future generations—the muffins eaten, the gardens remodeled or abandoned. Words on the page, though, have longevity.” Anne Youngson considers pandemic hobbies and writing fiction. | Lit Hub What it’s like... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-01-29 11:30:33 UTC ]
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As a verb, one definition of essay is to try. As horrible as 2020 was, let’s pretend it means to try again. Audiobooks of self-contained pieces between twenty and sixty minutes seem perfectly suited for walks, commutes, and household chores. Essays might also be perfect for attention spans... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-01-28 09:48:07 UTC ]
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Whether you're practicing a language, or want to read a book in its original language, try these audiobook apps for language learning. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2021-01-20 11:39:00 UTC ]
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These beautifully narrated audiobook short story collections tell precise, polished tales about Black women, the fantastical, and more. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2021-01-19 11:30:00 UTC ]
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Every Monday through Friday, AudioFile’s editors recommend the best in audiobook listening. We keep our daily episodes short and sweet, with audiobook clips to give you a sample of our featured listens. Miebaka Yohannes narrates The Black Friend with a conversational tone that mirrors Frederick... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-01-19 09:47:00 UTC ]
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North London-based charity Calibre Audio's Emma Scott talks to us about how it has navigated the boom in the audio sector to continue fulfilling it mission to provide free audiobooks to those with a print disability. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-01-18 13:02:19 UTC ]
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Emilia Fox is to read the audiobook of Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason, publishing with Weidenfeld & Nicolson in February. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-01-14 18:36:31 UTC ]
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Every Monday through Friday, AudioFile’s editors recommend the best in audiobook listening. We keep our daily episodes short and sweet, with audiobook clips to give you a sample of our featured listens. The product of a self-imposed desert exile with his exhaustive collection of personal... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-01-08 09:46:50 UTC ]
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Every Monday through Friday, AudioFile’s editors recommend the best in audiobook listening. We keep our daily episodes short and sweet, with audiobook clips to give you a sample of our featured listens. What would happen if Jesus’s second coming occurred in America, and he believed the best way... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2021-01-01 09:00:28 UTC ]
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At the end of 2020, sorting through my papers was a welcome reminder of the joys of a literary life Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2020-12-30 13:00:00 UTC ]
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Every Monday through Friday, AudioFile’s editors recommend the best in audiobook listening. We keep our daily episodes short and sweet, with audiobook clips to give you a sample of our featured listens. Author and narrator Becky Cooper’s true-crime audiobook, We Keep the Dead Close, chronicles... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-12-30 09:46:52 UTC ]
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Every Monday through Friday, AudioFile’s editors recommend the best in audiobook listening. We keep our daily episodes short and sweet, with audiobook clips to give you a sample of our featured listens. Narrator Amir Abdullah depicts Chicago’s wealthy enclaves, struggling neighborhoods, and... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-12-30 09:44:33 UTC ]
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Every Monday through Friday, AudioFile’s editors recommend the best in audiobook listening. We keep our daily episodes short and sweet, with audiobook clips to give you a sample of our featured listens. Actress and comedian Rachel Bloom narrates her own memoir, I Want to Be Where the Normal... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-12-29 09:46:38 UTC ]
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Every Monday through Friday, AudioFile’s editors recommend the best in audiobook listening. We keep our daily episodes short and sweet, with audiobook clips to give you a sample of our featured listens. Narrator Edoardo Ballerini anchors a full-cast performance of The Cold Millions, a story that... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-12-28 09:00:55 UTC ]
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