Summary:
Alexis Conneau leaves OpenAI to found WaveForms with $40 million backing.
WaveForms aims to develop emotional general intelligence in AI voices.
Conneau addresses the Scarlett Johansson controversy regarding AI voice likeness.
WaveForms focuses on enhancing AI's understanding of tone, inflection, and accent.
The startup's audio LLMs will capture emotional nuances, improving interactions in various contexts.
From OpenAI to WaveForms
In September, Alexis Conneau departed from OpenAI, where he was instrumental in developing the voice feature for ChatGPT. This feature stirred some controversy, particularly when actress Scarlett Johansson expressed her discontent over her voice being associated with the AI.
Introducing WaveForms
Now, Conneau, alongside business strategist Coralie Lamaitre, is launching WaveForms with $40 million in seed funding from a16z. This startup aims to enhance audio AI, focusing on what Conneau terms emotional general intelligence (EGI).
Addressing the Johansson Controversy
Conneau clarified that the ChatGPT voice was not intended to mimic Johansson, although he acknowledged that people often associate AI voices with popular media representations, like in the movie Her. He emphasized the need to avoid the negative implications portrayed in such films.
The Mission of WaveForms
WaveForms seeks to push the boundaries of audio AI, which Conneau describes as the “social-emotional layer” of artificial general intelligence (AGI). The objective is to enhance AI's ability to interpret and respond to spoken language, capturing nuances like tone, inflection, and accent.
Advancements in Audio AI
WaveForms will develop audio LLMs capable of understanding emotional subtleties in voices, a feature that current assistants like Alexa and Siri lack. For example, an educational AI could recognize when a student is frustrated and respond with greater patience.
Conneau's Vision
Conneau left OpenAI to focus on the potential of audio intelligence within large language models, a challenge he faced during his previous tenure there. He expressed excitement about the future of AI and the role it will play in enhancing human interaction rather than replacing it.
Inspiration from Sci-Fi
While movies like Her serve as inspiration for technological advancement, Conneau believes the future of AI is complementary to human interaction, enhancing the quality of our social lives rather than detracting from it.
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