OpenAI just opened ChatGPT Search to all free users and rolled real-time web browsing into Advanced Voice Mode. The update speeds up response times, improves local business cards on mobile, and lets users set ChatGPT as their browser's default search engine. It is OpenAI's biggest move yet to take on traditional search engines head-on.
Meta just rolled out firmware v11 for Ray-Ban Meta glasses to early access users in the US and Canada, adding real-time AI video and continuous voice chat. Wearers can now ask questions about whatever is in front of them without repeating wake words, alongside live translation for Spanish, French, and Italian. Why it matters: It beats Google to getting multimodal live vision onto consumers' faces.
Google just revamped NotebookLM with experimental Gemini 2.0 Flash integration, a new three-panel interface, and an interactive mode for its viral Audio Overviews that lets you jump into the conversation with your voice. The company is also rolling out NotebookLM Plus, a premium tier offering over 5x higher limits for heavy users and enterprises.
OpenAI just rolled out a festive 'Santa Mode' across all ChatGPT platforms for the holiday season. Users can tap the snowflake icon next to the chat bar to talk with a jolly-sounding Santa Claus, and the conversations won't save to history or touch your memory. It is free for everyone, but only until the end of the month.
TIME just launched TIME AI, an interactive tool built with ElevenLabs and Scale AI that turns static articles into a two-way voice conversation. Readers can ask follow-up questions directly to an audio agent equipped with article context and archives, essentially giving legacy journalism a personalized interactive guide.
YouTube just rolled out its AI-powered auto-dubbing to hundreds of thousands of knowledge-focused channels in its Partner Program. English uploads now get automatically dubbed into eight languages, with creators able to preview or delete tracks before publishing. The voices still sound robotic, but updates to match emotion and environment are coming.
WaveForms, a new startup founded by a key contributor behind ChatGPT's Advanced Voice Mode, just unveiled its ambitious mission to pass the "Speech Turing Test." Instead of relying on traditional speech-to-text conversion that strips away emotion and tone, the company is building models designed to capture subtle human nuances, starting with consumer apps.
ElevenLabs just expanded its GenFM podcast creator to Studio, allowing anyone to turn articles, PDFs, and links into lifelike discussions between two AI co-hosts. Creators can edit the transcript, swap voices, and export the audio across 32 languages for commercial use. GenFM is also rolling out globally on the ElevenReader Android app.
Microsoft just launched a preview of Copilot Vision inside Edge, allowing the AI to see what is on your screen and talk with you in real time. Browsing sessions are opt-in and deleted immediately afterward to address privacy concerns. It is currently rolling out to select Copilot Pro subscribers in the US via Copilot Labs.
Spotify just partnered with Google to bring NotebookLM's viral podcast hosts straight to your 2024 Wrapped. The AI hosts generate a customized, two-person audio show diving into your unique listening habits and favorite artists from the past year. It is currently rolling out for a limited time in select English-speaking regions.
ElevenLabs just rolled out Conversational AI, an all-in-one platform for building custom, interactive voice agents. It combines lifelike text-to-speech, speech recognition, and custom LLMs with real-time turn-taking and interruption handling. Why it matters: developers can now roll out responsive voice bots for sales or support with native Twilio integration.
EVI 2 just introduced Voice Control, an experimental feature that replaces prompts and risky voice cloning with 10 continuous sliders like confidence, nasality, and smoothness. Traits are disentangled so tweaking one won't distort the others, letting creators sculpt reproducible custom voices in seconds.
Hume AI just rolled out Voice Control in beta for its Empathic Voice Interface 2 (EVI 2), bypassing clunky text prompts and risky voice cloning with 10 continuous perceptual sliders. Developers can tweak traits like confidence, nasality, and assertiveness in real time to generate unique, reproducible brand voices. Extreme parameter settings are still being fine-tuned.
ElevenLabs just added GenFM to its ElevenReader iOS app, letting you convert PDFs, articles, and ebooks into customized podcasts voiced by AI co-hosts. The feature supports 32 languages and generates conversational episodes in seconds. Android support is expected in the coming weeks.
OpenAI and Meta are partnering with telecom giant Orange to fine-tune AI models for regional African languages currently ignored by mainstream GenAI. The project starts with West Africa's Wolof and Pulaar, training Whisper and Llama 3.1 to power voice support, with plans to release models under a free non-commercial license for local health and education. Why it matters: It’s a practical push for digital inclusion, bringing AI to millions who don't speak dominant global languages.
IMAX just partnered with Dubai-based startup Camb.ai to localize its original content, starting with documentaries. Camb.ai's specialized speech models, Boli and Mars, support over 140 languages and are built to preserve background audio nuances without scraping the open web. IMAX plans a phased rollout starting with high-resource languages to cut dubbing costs.
Perplexity just partnered with Quartr to integrate its API, giving users worldwide access to live earnings call transcripts paired with AI summaries. Institutional investors used to hoard these analytical tools, but now anyone can track corporate earnings in real time.
Nvidia just debuted Fugatto, a generative audio model that transforms existing sounds and invents entirely new soundscapes from text prompts. It can morph piano chords into singing voices or turn a train rumble into an orchestra. Nvidia is withholding its public release for now over safety and copyright concerns.
ChatGPT's Advanced Voice Mode might finally be getting eyes. Code discovered in the latest v1.2024.317 beta reveals upcoming Live Camera features alongside real-time video processing and visual recognition. Six months after OpenAI first demoed the capability back in May, a broader rollout could be inching closer.
OpenAI just expanded ChatGPT's Advanced Voice Mode to the web, letting users talk to the chatbot directly inside their browser. Powered by GPT-4o's native audio capabilities, the feature supports real-time emotional conversations and nine output voices. It rolls out to paying subscribers first, with free access coming in the next few weeks.
