Audible is facing backlash after launching over 100 AI voices for audiobooks in four languages, including English, Spanish, French, and Italian. The company also plans to add AI translation later this year.
The move sparked concerns across the publishing and voice acting industries, especially in Australia. Narrators like Annabelle Tudor worry AI won’t capture the emotional nuances of narration.
“I’ve narrated really raunchy sex scenes – AI doesn’t know what an orgasm sounds like,” Tudor said.
“Birth scenes as well – I’d love to know how they plan on getting around that.”
The launch follows after Apple and Amazon rolled out their own AI audiobook offerings in 2023. Spotify also opened its platform to AI audiobooks earlier this year.
Audible claims the AI voices will complement human narrators, not replace them. They’re also testing voice replicas that let narrators clone their own voice to boost audiobook output.
“In 2023 and 2024, Audible Studios hired more [human] narrators than ever before,” an Audible spokesperson told The Guardian.
“We continue to hear from creators who want to make their work available in audio, reaching new audiences across languages.”
Voice actors aren’t convinced. Dorje Swallow, a narrator of 70 books, called the AI approach “laughable,” saying it ignores what it takes to produce quality audiobooks.
Australian Association of Voice Actors president Simon Kennedy said AI is about “volume over quality” and “cheapen[ing] the process.” His group says 5,000 local voice jobs could be lost.
“An audiobook narrator has such a special and intimate relationship with the listener that to try and do anything that is less connective is a foolish move,” Kennedy said.
“If an emotionless narration at a consistent volume is all you need for ‘high-quality’, then sure. But if engaging, gripping, edge-of-your-seat storytelling is your version of high-quality, then don’t hold your breath for AI to give you that.”
Kennedy also slammed Australia for lagging behind in AI regulations. Unlike the EU, China, and Spain, Australia has no laws on voice cloning consent, data scraping, or labeling AI-generated content.
Hannah Kent, author of Burial Rites and Devotion, condemned AI’s creative impact after learning her pirated work was used to train Meta’s AI.
“I think it’s fairly obvious that the main reason to use AI would be for costs, and I think that’s going to cheapen things in a literal sense and cheapen things in a creative sense – in that sense of us honouring the storytelling, artistic and creative impulse,” Kent said.
Tudor warns AI narration could drive listeners away.
“The foot is on the pedal to drive straight into dystopia,” she said.
“Can we just listen to people instead of robots?”
