It seems that we’ve finally reached that moment where technology can basically do anything as seen in the most strange sci-fi stories. In a fashion similar to the audio deepfakes, Amazon has just presented a new experimental feature in the beloved Alexa technology that can mimic the voice of a departed relative to interact with users.
The demo feature was presented at the annual MARS conference with what they thought was a sweet interaction between a little boy and his departed grandmother reading a bedtime story. Although at first it might sound nice, and the video was certainly very emotional, there’s something underlying there that doesn’t sound healthy, not to mention creepy. But first things first; how does it work?
Amazon already has managed to recreate the voices of celebrities like Shaquille O’Neal and comedian Melissa McCarthy. To do so both celebs had to record hours and hours of audio so that the system could create phrases with the material recorded. However, this is different.
According to Rohit Prasad, the head scientist of the Alexa AI, they have developed a technology that can synthesize and replicate high-quality voices using less than a minute of a recorded speech. That means that if you have as little of a voice note of your departed relative, they could use it to have entire conversations.
But what’s the purpose of this? According to Prasad, since its creation, it has been a goal to give Alexa and their AI systems human attributes. But now more than anything, this seems crucial for them to help users create stronger bonds to heal and mourn. Prasad added that this has become a priority “in these times of the ongoing pandemic when so many of us have lost someone we love.” Not only that, he claims that this feature could help users create “lasting personal relationships with their deceased.”
Still, could it help? For the AI team of scientists, “while AI can’t eliminate that pain of loss, it can definitely make their memories last.” Now, this sounds lovely as we mentioned, but it could backfire in the mourning process. It seems like a feature that can hook us up even more to a device that will give us some sort of placebo effect instead of actually helping us move on healthily, especially in these times, when mental health issues have become a pandemic of their own.
Now, it’s not clear if the feature will actually be available to the public since neither Prasad nor the company has made any statement. More than presenting a new service, it seemed like Amazon was just showing off its technological advances. So, although it’s amazing how much can be done with technology, perhaps it’s time to question to what degree we want technology to be a part of our emotional and mental life.
