AI seems to be infiltrating every part of our world these days. From visual art to Chat GPT in college papers, it’s a problem that many industries are tackling and one that we’ve been thinking about for a few months now. So, the question remains: will AI replace voice actors in the near future? We certainly don’t think so. Here’s a few reasons why we think AI will never replace the human voice in the voiceover profession:
1. It’s Tone Deaf
While AI technology has made many strides in speech synthesis, it still hasn’t got down many of the facets of voice acting that are crucial to the craft. For example, tone and inflection are things that AI still really struggles to accomplish; and without nailing these specific features, the true emphasis of the message will be totally lost on the audience. It will take too many years and too much data for this to be rectified and perfected. Because of this AI will never replace the human voice as it doesn’t have the ability to sound smooth, natural, or reliable. Remember, tone is everything!
2. AI Can’t Act
Those in the voiceover industry know that an incredible voice isn’t the only thing that makes a great voice actor. Crafted and honed acting skills sets real people apart from AI in this aspect. AI will never replace the human voice as long as an actual level of talent is required for the voice or role. The quality of AI voices has not reached a level of reality so far yet as to be able to acquire these skills–so many still sound robotic or unnatural–so real voiceover still reigns supreme when it comes to voice acting parts. Emotionality is everything when it comes to voiceover, and without emotions, AI will never be as good as the real thing.
3. This Industry is about People
Talent and emotion are important reasons why we think AI won’t take over voice acting, but the main reason why we think AI will never replace the human voice is because our industry really is centered around people. Humanity means everything to voiceover. The need and want for authentic human voices is what propelled so many facets of our industry today! Remember the robotic voices of the 90’s when you called into corporate businesses? THE WORST! Those voices were the grandfather of AI, and in our opinion the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree no matter how far technology has come.
The human voice means everything to our industry and everything to us here at Worldly Voices. If you’d like to learn more about the many ways we encourage real human voices in voice acting and how our studio does everything in its power to support our talented voice actors, please reach out. Partnering with our studio means a support for real people in a time where technology strips us from what is most important and real.
