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 ]
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. Dan Richards narrates his audiobook, Outpost, in a clear English accent that often sounds as... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-10-05 17:53:36 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 Sisi Aisha Johnson embodies all of the joy and light of fourth grader Ryan Hart in... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-10-02 09:13:44 UTC ]
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Charlie Mackesy will narrate the audiobook of his bestseller The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse, with a musical score and real wildlife sounds helping bring it to life. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-09-30 07:56:33 UTC ]
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The music streaming giant is poised to enter the audiobook market. Here's what that means for publishers. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-09-25 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Jumping from one to three major unlimited-subscription services for audio content, Spain's publishing market is growing fast. The post Audiobook Subscriptions: Audible and Podimo Join Storytel in Spain appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2020-09-21 16:07:40 UTC ]
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Gore Vidal’s “Hollywood” is finally getting the audiobook treatment, and not a moment too soon. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2020-09-14 12:00:00 UTC ]
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Famed writer and activist Cory Doctorow is selling the audio version of his upcoming book via Kickstarter to sidestep the walled garden of Amazon-owned audiobook platform Audible. When science fiction writer and activist Cory Doctorow releases his new novel, Attack Surface, next month, you’ll be... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2020-09-12 09:00:52 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. Seraphine Valentine narrates Alexis Daria’s charming romance, You Had Me at Hola, where the... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-09-11 08:41:16 UTC ]
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Holliday Grainger will read the audiobook version of Dolly Alderton's eagerly-awaited debut novel Ghosts (Fig Tree). Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-09-02 15:24:17 UTC ]
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The prankish device is the subject of a new audiobook that pokes serious fun at Silicon Valley’s culture of disruption. We spoke with its inventor. Continue reading at Wired
[ Wired | 2020-08-31 12:00:00 UTC ]
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From The New Yorker’s archive: short stories by Zadie Smith, Jennifer Egan, and Stephen King. Continue reading at New Yorker
[ New Yorker | 2020-08-30 10:00:00 UTC ]
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The Oscar-nominated actor narrates “The Autobiography of Malcolm X” in an audiobook project he says “doesn’t change my perspective so much as it amplifies it.” Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2020-08-30 09:00:11 UTC ]
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Sir Paul Nurse will narrate the audio edition of his book What is Life?, to be published by Faber in September. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-08-27 14:56:38 UTC ]
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Get immersed in a world and get in deep with the characters in these compelling audiobook series (and learn the length of each series). Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-08-25 10:33:00 UTC ]
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W F Howes is to release new audiobook versions of a "cult series of horror-genre" books, using 40-year-old recordings made by their original publisher The Eden Book Society. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-08-19 10:06:08 UTC ]
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From The New Yorker’s archive: short stories by Zadie Smith, Jennifer Egan, and Stephen King. Continue reading at New Yorker
[ New Yorker | 2020-08-16 10:00:00 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. The hosts of the “Call Your Girlfriend” podcast are warm, open, and matter-of-fact narrators... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-08-14 08:44:10 UTC ]
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LinkedIn offloaded presentation-sharing service SlideShare to ebook and audiobook platform Scribd for an undisclosed price. The professional network acquired SlideShare for $118.75 million in May 2012. Scribd will begin operating SlideShare Sept. 24, managing accounts and content, and Scribd... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2020-08-12 14:55:00 UTC ]
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Do you always listen to audiobooks on a certain speed? Is it worth listening on double speed to get through twice as many books? Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-08-11 10:39:00 UTC ]
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Stephen King is publishing a new crime novel, Later, with Titan Books imprint Hard Case Crime in March 2021. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-08-04 01:17:41 UTC ]
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