Apple is set to release a new accessibility feature in its next major update called “Personal Voice”, Business Insider reports. If activated, your iPhone will prompt you to read sentences off a screen for 15 minutes, which will be enough to create a synthesized voice of your own that will sound just like you.
The feature is aimed at those at risk of losing their voice, such as those diagnosed with ALS or other disease which makes speaking impossible. As of now, some services exist to record voices and create a synthesized voice, but these consume hundreds of hours of recording and are expensive. A free service that only takes 15 minutes would be a game changer for those diagnosed. Sadly, this feature only works by inputting current voice sounds so it will be not be possible to use for those who have already lost their voice, at least not yet.
Although the technology is exciting and very futuristic, it does bring up ethical and privacy concerns. Our voice is one of the most identifiable thing about us, and being able to essentially clone it could feel invasive and dangerous. Phone scams could even proliferate if bad actors somehow got control of a person’s voice. Apple claims that all the processing and data remains on the iPhone, but this reassurance might not be enough for privacy-conscious consumers.
