When you are reading this, Vivien and I will be on Hawai’i; Waikiki, as a matter of fact. We haven’t been since before COVID and are looking forward to it very much. I’ve dusted off my ukelele (no really, I do have one!)
“And now for something completely different…” [Monty Python gag line].
Seriously though, times are changing and changing so FAST that what was true even 3 months ago may no longer be relevant.
So it is with digital technology. We’ve no sooner heard of ChatGPT (another of Elon Musk’s brilliant breakthroughs!) than the whole of AI voicing and creation has gone into shocking overdrive.
It’s scary what they can do nowadays. But it’s also exciting and, you know me, I’m in there for the ride. A Luddite (you’ll have to look up the term) associate of mine has a very dismal view of this advancing AI technology. But then she’s a bit older than me and only recently learned to use a smartphone and doesn’t own a TV.
Today that’s dinosaur mentality (though I love her to bits).
You ask: WHAT am I raving about now? Yes, let’s calm down and get to the point.
I have some audios to share with you and am so excited about what they demonstrate that I wanted to make it the subject of my weekly newsletter.
FIRST UP: I was able to teach a voice clone how to speak with my exact voice by simply uploading 5 of my earlier recordings. The AI simply learned my speech and nuances and can generate “me” whenever it wants.
Now be clear: THIS IS NOT JUST A RECORDING. It’s an AI voice that can read anything in my voice! I can hear my rhythm and nuances. It really is just like me! It doesn’t even have to be text written by me. It can read Shakespeare in my voice!
So here is tremendous potential. I can have an audio track with “me” speaking made in mere seconds of any article I have ever written. I can produce an audio book in an hour! All I have to do is upload the texts and press START.
Now I’m not lazy by nature. I write and write and write. I LOVE to write: scriptures in the making, medical advisories, poems, novels (only one published so far), deep consciousness studies, philosophy, nature, music, history. That doesn’t even take into account my numerous blogs. I now have close on 3 million words in my word processor, a lot of it not yet published, and I was in despair of how to get it out there.
Well, this is a Godsend. Since I already went through the process of writing it, I feel perfectly entitled to have a speeded up process of sharing it with YOU, the public! That’s not lazy, it’s just re-cycling the effort!
BUT THAT’S NOT ALL!
If it were, that’s exciting enough. What is EVEN MORE EXCITING is that I have discovered two clever, very natural-sounding, AI voices, produced by Google’s NotebookLM.
You probably know, I hate Google for their greed, domination and abuses. But to be honest one has to admit that Google changed everything with its masterful search engine, Google Earth, Google maps and the satnav capability of MAPS and, for me since I live in France, Google Translate. You can hold a conversation in over 240 languages, just by speaking into your smart phone!
So I’m all in there with their AI. It’s the best there is, so far, because they have the most resources. So much so that now I can upload a chapter or white paper and Google will have two non-existent avatars break it down and discuss it intelligently, even scraping extra remarks on my topic from around the internet.
I thought these voices would be called Barbara and Dick—but Vivien says NO! Too old fashioned. To her, they are Stella and Jason. [after hearing these voices, you can tell me what YOU think they are called] I’ll pick the ones that resonate the most. Just be aware these are only names in my mind; they don’t appear in writing anywhere.
SO HERE WE GO:
I have set up a page with these exciting tracks, for you to sample for your delectation and delight. I hope they don’t scare you to hell. It is a bit creepy in a way. But think of the good in this. And if you can’t, think: IT’S COMING ANYWAY, READY OR NOT!
Sure it has evil potential but that doesn’t mean decent people are barred from technological advances.
Here’s the link:
www.DrKeithPodcast.com/ai-adventures
The first track, less than a minute, is my “ghost” or avatar voice, called “DrKeith”. I think you will agree, it’s pretty darn good.
That’s followed by “Stella and Jason” discussing a piece of mine called MIND SPECTRUM. It’s part 1 of a 2-part model called The Glass Elevator To God. They really do seem to grasp it fully and run with it.
Then there is PIPS AND PIPPING. This something I put out as a slim book a few years ago, based largely on the “Freedom Tools” of my buddy the late Per Schiottz from Denmark. It’s about how we make ourselves smaller (pips) and what to do about it.
#4, The big one in this set is VOICES FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE. Some of it comes from my book Medicine Beyond, the topic of electronic voice phenomena, and some of it from material I’m a preparing for another book Overcoming The Fear Of Dying.
It’s a good example of how the avatar pair start discussing my work and then veer off into fields not mentioned. They talk about mediumship and the ouija board, which I do not! But it hangs together very well.
All in all, I think you’ll find the pair lively and authentic.
Finally, if you are curious, I put a Shakespeare sonnet into my voice. I did not read this poem. I did nothing; just uploaded the text and pressed GO!
Here’s the link to the recordings again:
www.DrKeithPodcast.com/ai-adventures
Keep an open mind! My friend Peter Shepherd is always saying a mind is like a parachute. If it isn’t open, it’s no good!
Prof. Keith Scott-Mumby
The Official Alternative Doctor
