Nearly every day lately, I read a headline and think, “Who asked for this?” Today’s version of our modern ridiculousness comes to us courtesy of NBCUniversal and its upcoming Olympics coverage.
NBC has what it thinks is a terrific idea for daily recaps of Olympic events tailored to subscribers to its Peacock streaming service, and it involves broadcasting legend Al Michaels. No, not the sportscasting great himself, silly. NBC is using an AI-generated version of Michaels’ voice for this daily coverage.
Seriously, who asked for this?
Richard Deitsch reports at The Athletic:
NBCU announced on Wednesday during an Olympic presentation in New York City that as part of its Paris Olympic coverage, Peacock will use A.I. technology to offer a personalized recap experience for Olympic fans. “Your Daily Olympic Recap on Peacock,” will use generative A.I. and A.I. voice synthesis technology to offer Olympic fans a customized recap of highlights and events from the Games. Each compilation will feature clips from the Olympics coverage and be narrated by an A.I. re-creation of Michaels’ voice. Peacock said the voice comes from using Michaels’ past appearances on NBC. The broadcaster signed off on the use of his voice. Earlier in the week, the company held a brief demonstration for reporters of the Daily Olympic recap, and it certainly sounds like Michaels’ voice.
There are some nifty features for subscribers. A Peacock subscriber signs in and answers some questions about what sports he or she wants to have “Michaels” recap for them. AI Al will greet the subscriber by name in the recap, which will theoretically feature the sports the subscriber has requested.
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“When I was approached about this, I was skeptical but obviously curious,” Michaels said in a statement. “Then I saw a demonstration detailing what they had in mind. I said, ‘I’m in.’”
I’m only guessing here, but I imagine that it’s significantly cheaper for NBC to use fake Michaels. I surmise that the network paid Michaels a decent sum; that way, he can keep playing golf and hanging out at home while NBC uses his voice for the recaps. No flight to Paris. No jet lag. No recording recaps at whatever ungodly hour an event ends. It’s a win-win for both parties.
But is it a win for viewers? For starters, viewers have to subscribe to Peacock to get the recaps, and who wants to do that? Even though the technology worked for the demo, who’s to say there won’t be glitches — and what would those issues look or sound like?
The debate over the wisdom or ethics of using AI to generate content using someone’s voice will continue to rage, but I suppose part of me wants to say good for NBC for trying something unique. At the same time, I wonder if this is just the latest example of the Olympics jumping the shark.
I've always had a love-loathe relationship with the Olympics. I enjoy watching it, especially some of the sports I don't get to watch often. I'll never forget the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta: watching the torch run through my hometown and going to one of the baseball games. Those are wonderful memories. We also walked through Centennial Olympic Park about 24 hours before the bomb went off.
But what drives me crazy about the Olympics is the sports the committee adds and takes away. The International Olympic Committee keeps taking baseball and softball away and bringing them back — Hallelujah, they'll be back in 2028! — but adding stuff like 3-on-3 basketball, flag football, and breakdancing is so dumb.
Anyway, if the folks at NBC can pull off AI Al Michaels, good on them. If the experiment fails, we'll all point and laugh.
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