Illness took away her voice. AI created a replica she carries in her phone

By MATT O’BRIEN
AP Technology Writer

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Artificial intelligence voice-cloning technology carries so many risks of harmful impersonation that major technology companies are wary of letting people use it. But a team of Rhode Island doctors and their 21-year-old patient found that it can also hold tremendous benefits. Alexis Bogan felt she lost a part of her identity last year when she emerged from brain surgery unable to speak fluently. So doctors working with ChatGPT-maker OpenAI created a synthetic version of her old voice based on a 15-second video clip she recorded in high school. She can make it say whatever she wants in a voice that sounds like her own.