Portland’s Stay 95.5 is now billing itself as “the world’s first radio station with an AI DJ” after utilizing synthetic intelligence to imitate – and partially exchange – one among its hosts.
The Alpha Media-owned station not too long ago took to social media to disclose the on-air debut of the AI DJ, which is powered by Futuri’s RadioGPT and primarily based on a (human) radio character named Ashley Elzinga. Stay 95.5’s weekday host between 12 PM and three PM, the previous Ryan Seacrest Productions intern Ashley Elzinga (referred to as “Ashley Z” to followers) reacted to her AI counterpart in a short video.
“In the present day I’m going from simply Ashley to AI Ashley on Stay 95.5. So let’s see how shut the AI sounds to me,” said the Michigan native, who after listening to “AI Ashley” recite the identical sentences laughed, acknowledged the replication’s accuracy, and joked about having “the day without work.”
A second clip uploaded to Stay 95.5’s Twitter seems to indicate AI Ashley in motion, interacting with a caller in reference to a ticket giveaway whereas on the air.
“It’s AI Ashley calling her first Taylor Swift winner,” declared the bogus intelligence voice, continuing to attend a pair rings for a solution, inquire as to this winner’s id, and supply a technically proficient (if considerably emotionally distant) description of the state of affairs.
Not less than within the supplied minute-long snippet, the person on the opposite aspect of the telephone didn’t point out or in any other case react to the truth that she was talking with an AI DJ. Alpha Media touted the “groundbreaking” growth – and touched upon its long-term plans for AI Ashley – in a proper launch that was forwarded to the radio trades.
“To place it merely, I’m ecstatic to be one of many trailblazers at Alpha Media serving to to construct an progressive and distinctive listening expertise for our viewers,” communicated Stay 95.5 content material director Dylan Salisbury. “We’ve been working laborious to make sure that AI Ashley is simply as reside, native, participating, and entertaining as the normal model, and I can’t look ahead to our followers to listen to each variations of Ashley in motion.”
Regardless of Salisbury’s enthusiasm, a variety of social media customers are expressing considerations concerning the underlying expertise’s long-term implications. And whereas the precise Ashley Z was again on the air on the time of this writing, she went forward and closed out at this time’s broadcast by clarifying that it was actually her, not her all-but-indistinguishable AI soundalike, who had spent the afternoon with listeners.
“You may have completely disrespected the radio occupation,” one irked commenter tweeted. “You made historical past for all of the unsuitable causes.”
“You guys are bragging about this? An already outdated medium is furthering their obsolescence by changing its folks with AI… oof,” weighed in one other observer.
However these and extra firmly worded remarks, logic means that it was solely a matter of time earlier than AI (which has for years been changing behind-the-scenes radio jobs) made its method onto the airwaves.
On the streaming aspect, Apple Music hasn’t hesitated to save lots of money, time, and hassle by tapping AI to learn audiobooks, whereas Spotify is quietly persevering with to increase its personal AI DJ providing into extra international locations.
And by way of music (the inspiration of radio and streaming alike, after all), synthetic intelligence is pumping out a mess of releases – some authorized by the suitable acts, others unauthorized.