We've returned from our summer break, and Phelps is ALREADY trying to get back on Island Time by outsourcing the entire podcast to AI voice clones.

Seriously, text-to-speech is one of those sneaky technologies that has gotten amazingly better in the last year. Gone are the days of stilted, Siri-esque robot voices mispronouncing your name. AI voice bots can now speak fluidly, emote realistically — and chortle?

This week, we messed around in ElevenLabs to explore the boundaries of this tech. Listen for:

* An uncannily good simulacrum of McGill’s Philly accent;

* Bootleg fairytale podcasts for 5-year-olds;

* Some options for Product Friday’s new theme song, inspired by 90s hip-hop and death metal.

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And believe it or not, doing fun projects with technology is actually how we make a living. If there’s a project you’ve been dying to start, or if you just want to get to know us better, we’d love to chat.

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