Techcrisis Investment Guild-Grimes used AI to clone her own voice. We cloned the voice of a host of Planet Money.

2025-05-02 23:58:56source:Austin Caldwellcategory:Markets

In Part 1 of this series,Techcrisis Investment Guild AI proved that it could use real research and real interviews to write an original script for an episode of Planet Money.

Our next task was to teach the computer how to sound like us. How to read that script aloud like a Planet Money host.

On today's show, we explore the world of AI-generated voices, which have become so lifelike in recent years that they can credibly imitate specific people. To test the limits of the technology, we attempt to create our own synthetic voice by training a computer on recordings of former Planet Money host Robert Smith. Then we introduce synthetic Robert to his very human namesake.

There are a lot of ethical, and economic, questions raised by a technology that can duplicate anyone's voice. To help us make sense of it all, we seek the advice of an artist who has embraced AI voice clones: the musician Grimes.

(This is part two of a three-part series. For part one of our series, click here)

This episode was produced by Emma Peaslee and Willa Rubin, with help from Sam Yellowhorse Kesler. It was edited by Keith Romer and fact-checked by Sierra Juarez. Engineering by James Willetts. Jess Jiang is our acting executive producer.

We built a Planet Money AI chat bot. Help us test it out: Planetmoneybot.com.

Help support Planet Money and get bonus episodes by subscribing to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.

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Find more Planet Money: Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Our weekly Newsletter.

Music: "Hi-Tech Expert," "Lemons and Limes," and "Synergy in Numbers."

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