Latest news with #Gayanne
The Herald Scotland
5 days ago
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
ScotRail is 'fixing' AI train announcer after voice controversy
But after prompting from Fiona Hyslop, he said: 'The Transport Secretary tells me they're fixing it, so they will be fixing it.' Ms Potter has welcomed this commitment as a 'meaningful step forward'. The issue was raised at First Minister's Questions at Holyrood, with Scottish Conservative MSP Dr Sandesh Gulhane asking if it is how the Scottish Government – which took ScotRail into public ownership in 2022 – 'supports actors'. The Tory pressed the case with Mr Swinney after Ms Potter, in a widely shared Facebook post, accused ScotRail of dismissing her concerns. She said Iona came from voice data held by Swedish-based company ReadSpeaker, who she did recordings for in 2021 – adding that by using her voice in an AI model the company had acted outside of the terms of her agreement with them. Ms Potter spoke of her 'distress' at discovering Scotland had 'installed the ReadSpeaker model 'Iona' that contains my biometric voice data as their new announcer on all their trains'. She insisted: 'I did not know. I was not asked. I did not consent.' Mr Swinney said he is 'sure' the rail operator will be 'engaging constructively with all concerned'. He added: 'I think sometimes these things do indeed need careful handling and I am sure ScotRail will be doing exactly that.' Following the First Minister's comments, a spokeswoman for Ms Potter told the PA news agency: 'We welcome the fact that the First Minister acknowledged the issue at hand and confirmed that ScotRail 'will be fixing it'. 'While the language may not be definitive at this stage, this public commitment is a meaningful step forward for Gayanne, and other artists in her position. 'That said, this case isn't just about hiring Scottish actors. It's about the use of a real actor's voice without her informed consent, and the broader need for ethical standards in the deployment of AI voice technology. 'We now hope that 'fixing it' will include direct engagement with Gayanne, proper accountability from those responsible, and a clear commitment to ensuring that consent, transparency, and fair treatment become non-negotiable in the use of AI by public bodies. 'The public sector needs to be rigorous in their procurement of AI solutions and the commercial partnerships they strike with AI companies.' Ms Potter's representative said the voice actress had been told by ScotRail earlier this week that the matter was between her and ReadSpeaker. She said they would request that ScotRail cease using 'Iona', adding: 'Any use of Gayanne's or anyone else's voice through AI must be based on her full, informed consent and agreed upon under fair conditions.' ReadSpeaker has said it has a contract to use her voice and its legal team has 'comprehensively' addressed Ms Potter's concerns.
Scotsman
31-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
I don't have any time for AI stealing our actors' voices
Telephonist Pat Simmons making recordings for TIM, the GPO.'s telephone Speaking Clock service in 1963. (Photo by Ronald Dumont/Daily Express/) I discovered something surprising the other day. BT's speaking clock still exits. The voice sounds the same as it always did and the script has hardly altered since my childhood, the only change being the insertion of a sponsor's name. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Dial 123 and you will hear the familiar tones informing you that 'at the third stroke the time, brought to you by O2, will be 5.27 and thirty seconds.' I was phoning for research purposes, but it it did make me wonder who uses it. In this day and age, when few people make calls on their landline, and most of us have a phone with a clock on the front, do we need this service? Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad In case you're wondering, when I ended the call to 123, I checked the time on my handset and it was 5.27. I'm not sure if it was a real person. It's sometimes difficult to tell. It definitely was a human voice at one time, but whether it has been sampled is unclear. The same is true of the voiceover announcements on the newer Lothian Buses vehicles. On the old buses, you can tell it's a woman reading off a script, but the new ones sound mechanical. There has been a lot of fuss this week about ScotRail's 'Iona', an AI-generated avatar whose voice has been from sampled the actual speech of Scottish actor Gayanne Potter, used without her permission. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It was taken from a job she did in 2021 for the Swedish company ReadSpeaker. Understandably she feels 'violated' and asks 'Why continue to choose a dreadful AI version of me when I'm right here?' If you go on to the BBC News website, you can compare the two. When you listen to Gayanne herself and Iona making the same announcements, you can tell it is definitely the same voice. However, while Gayanne has a warm human tone with varied colours, Iona sounds stilted and robotic. I find AI-generated announcements sinister. They have a similar disembodied feel to the messages that hostages are forced to read, reassuring their friends and family that they are alive and well. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It's definitely their voice, but devoid of emotion as they are speaking the kidnappers' words from a script. A former girlfriend of mine is an actor. Her first professional job when she left drama school was reading the Reading-to-London bus timetable, which was available as a 24-hour phone service. Her grandparents in Sunderland were so proud of her that they used to regularly phone up the timetable to hear Carol's voice. She later went on to have a successful career on stage and TV, yet that voiceover job was the first rung on the ladder for her. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Some actors specialise in voiceover work and for them it is their major source of income. The increasing use of AI is a huge threat to them. In the case of Gayanne Potter, it amounts to theft. ReadSpeaker should have asked for her permission and paid a fee before using her voice. However, human voices are not always the best option. I once did a voiceover job for an advert featuring Kerry Katona. It took her six takes to get her own name right. If we'd used AI, we'd have got home a lot quicker.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
OPINION - 'I'm devastated that AI stole my voice' ...Tech & Science Daily podcast
Listen here on your chosen podcast platform. Gayanne Potter told us that ScotRail are using her voice for their new AI train announcements without her permission. ScotRail unveiled their new AI announcer 'Iona' earlier this month, and Gayanne is urging them to change it. Gayanne explained that her voice was taken from a previous employer, Swedish company ReadSpeaker, and claims it was not made clear in her contract that they could use her voice again in the future. This episode includes responses from both ScotRail and ReadSpeaker. Also in this episode: -Disposable vapes are officially banned from Sunday, June 1st -New AI test could end 'postcode lottery' for 'game changer' prostate cancer drug -Drought declared in North West England -Japanese researchers say cats can indeed smell the difference between a stranger and their owner…
Evening Standard
30-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Evening Standard
'I'm devastated that AI stole my voice' ...Tech & Science Daily podcast
Gayanne explained that her voice was taken from a previous employer, Swedish company ReadSpeaker, and claims it was not made clear in her contract that they could use her voice again in the future.
Scottish Sun
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
ScotRail stole my voice for new AI train announcements without my permission – I feel so violated
The train provider said they won't be removing the new robot voice - which replaced a real person after 20 years AI DON'T BELIEVE IT ScotRail stole my voice for new AI train announcements without my permission – I feel so violated Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A SCOTS actress has slammed ScotRail after claiming her voice was stolen to create their new AI train announcer, leaving her feeling 'violated' and powerless. The government-owned train operator controversially introduced a synthetic Scottish voice to make onboard announcements to replace pre-recorded human announcers earlier this month. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 ScotRail introduced an AI voice to its announcements - but it is claimed it was stolen Credit: Michael Schofield - The Sun Glasgow 3 Gayanne Potter claims she feel violated and exploited after the train firm used her voice without her permission Credit: Facebook But Gayanne Potter, one of the country's leading voiceover artists, says new AI voice, 'Iona', is based on recordings she made in 2021—without her consent. She revealed she'd been locked in a bitter dispute with Swedish company ReadSpeaker for two years, which Gayanne claims has misused her voice data. The rail operator told the BBC it does not intend to remove the AI voice from its trains after Gayanne highlighted the issue in a now-viral Facebook post. Now the furious voiceover artist, from the outskirts of Edinburgh, says her biometric data has been exploited, leaving her outraged. She told the Scottish Sun: 'To discover ScotRail bought a robotic version of my voice data without my written consent was shocking enough. "But now I know ScotRail is aware they bought a voice data model of me, containing my biometric data, without my consent, and yet they're refusing to remove it from their trains. "It's disgusting behaviour. "Why choose a dreadful AI version of me when I'm right here? "It's unfathomable that my voice data has been used to train AI models without my consent. "My biometric data is unique to me, and it's being exploited without any regard for my rights." 'Great work lads', joke ScotRail users as they slam changes at major station Gayanne maintains that the recordings were meant for translation purposes but were later used to develop the AI model now being touted by the public rail provider, breaching their agreement. Ms Potter insisted her original contract clearly stated that any forward selling to third parties would require her written consent. She says she received only a 'minimal' fee for the initial work, which she offered to repay to have the data deleted. She continued: 'This technology didn't exist in its current form when I recorded for ReadSpeaker. "ScotRail, a public body, is knowingly using someone's biometric data without consent, yet they've stated they have no plans to remove it. "Traditionally, voice artists like myself would have been contracted for such jobs, but ScotRail has replaced real people with AI, dismissing the previous voice artist who served them for 20 years. "Their justification for using AI - that it allows for rapid announcements in unforeseen situations - is absurd. "There's nothing so unexpected on a railway network that couldn't be pre-recorded. 3 Gayanne Potter, voice actress who accuses ScotRail of stealing her voice Credit: Supplied "The AI model is riddled with errors, mispronouncing place names because it relies on phonetic spellings rather than correct ones." ReadSpeaker claims they have a contract to use her voice and their legal team has 'comprehensively' addressed her concerns. However, Ms Potter remains adamant that her voice data has been exploited, leaving her feeling violated and powerless. Previously, ScotRail was forced to statement about their use of AI after commuters noticed a change in how stations were pronounced. It said difficult place names such as Milngavie and Achnasheen are inputted phonetically as "Mill-guy" and "Akna-sheen" to help the software avoid embarrassing mistakes. But Ms Potter added: "The AI model is riddled with errors, mispronouncing place names because it relies on phonetic spellings rather than correct ones. "Politicians have been slow to address the dangers of AI misuse. "If a deepfake of a politician were to emerge in a compromising situation, it would likely prompt immediate action. "Until something drastic happens to someone in power, the creative community will continue to be overlooked." Phil Campbell, ScotRail Customer Operations Director, said last night: 'ScotRail has always used automated announcements in relation to customer information, but it doesn't replace human interaction through either pre-recorded audio or staff on trains - something that will continue. 'We are working closely with Network Rail and other train operating companies to continue making improvements across Scotland's Railway, and we are hopeful of further developments in the coming months.'
