The Most Human-Like AI Voice Yet 🗣

Welcome to another edition of Horizon AI,

Today, we’ll take a look at Apple’s struggle to rebuild Siri for the age of generative AI and a new AI that sounds so human it’s almost unsettling.

Let’s get started!

Read Time: 4.5 min

Here's what's new today in the Horizon AI

• A New AI Voice That Sounds Almost Human 🗣

• Apple Delays Major Siri Update to 2027

• AI Tutorial: How to generate AI videos in Adobe Firefly

• AI Tools to check out

• The Latest in AI and Tech 💡

• AI Findings/Resources

AI News

SESAME

A New AI Voice That Sounds Almost Human 🗣

Sesame, a new startup from the man who ran Oculus VR and sold it to Facebook, has released the first demo of its conversational AI voice assistant. It can read and respond to emotions, adjust tone and style to match the situation, and use natural timing and pauses—promising the closest thing to a human-like experience you've ever had talking to an AI.

Details:

• In a blog post titled "Crossing the Uncanny Valley of Conversational Voice," the company released a demo of its new AI chatbot, allowing you to talk to either "Maya" or "Miles."

• The goal, Sesame says, is to achieve something called "voice presence," or the "magical quality that makes spoken interactions feel real, understood, and valued."

• The startup also says it’s building AI glasses to go along with its new voice assistant, “designed to be worn all day, giving you high-quality audio and convenient access to your companion who can observe the world alongside you.”

The company acknowledges that it is a work in progress and that improvements are underway. For now, you can try Maya (or Miles) for free—just head to Sesame's demo page to check it out.

Source

APPLE

Apple Delays Major Siri Update to 2027

Apple’s virtual assistant, Siri, may not get its long-awaited upgrade for another two years. According to a report by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple is working hard to modernize Siri for the age of AI, but 'a true modernized, conversational version' of Siri isn’t expected until 2027.

Details:

• Siri will still receive big updates before then. A new version of Siri will reportedly debut in May, finally incorporating all the Apple Intelligence features announced nearly a year earlier.

• Gurman describes this version of Siri as having “two brains”—one for basic tasks like setting timers and making calls, and another for more advanced queries that can leverage user data.

• The system designed to merge the two brains, known internally as “LLM Siri,” is set to be announced at WWDC in June, ahead of its launch in spring 2026. Only then will Apple be able to fully pursue the development of Siri’s advanced capabilities, which could launch the following year.

This is a significant delay given the rapid advancements in AI, where two years can make a huge difference. The tech giant seems to be struggling more than expected, as competitors like Amazon have already released AI-powered assistants, and Apple’s new AI features have also been criticized as inferior to alternatives from other companies.

Source

AI Tutorial

How to generate AI videos in Adobe Firefly

1. Go to the Adobe Firefly website and create an account.

2. On the homepage, select either Text to Video or Image to Video to open the workspace.

3. Enter a detailed text prompt or upload an image.

4. For best results, structure your text prompt as follows: Shot Type + Character + Action + Location + Aesthetic. You can find detailed text prompt writing tips and examples in Adobe’s Help Center.

5. If you're using an image, you should also use a text prompt to describe how you want the image brought to life.

6. Click Generate and wait a few seconds.

7. If you like the video Firefly generates, use the Download button in the top right to download as an mp4 file.

8. You can add more detail to your text prompt to generate completely new videos or play with settings to explore different variations. In the panel on the left, you can adjust the aspect ratio, camera angle, and motion. Just be sure to save any videos you like before you create new ones.

AI Tools to check out

⭐ Flora: Create at the speed of thought. All of the top text, image, and video AI models in one infinite canvas.

⚡ Helix: This tool turns your startup idea into an investor-ready prototype in minutes.

🗣 Pinch: Real-time AI voice translation for video calls.

💡 ExplainGithub: An intelligent code exploration platform that helps developers understand GitHub repositories more efficiently.

🔊 Octave TTS: Create any AI voice with a descriptive prompt, guide its emotional delivery, and bring your stories to life with human-like expression.

AI Findings/Resources

💜 How AI can help you plan the perfect date night

👀 I asked ChatGPT to work through some of the biggest philosophical debates of all time – here’s what happened

 📖 A complete guide to Natural Language Processing

🔮 This 5-year tech industry forecast predicts some surprising winners - and losers

👉 European approach to AI

The latest in AI and Tech

OpenAI plans Sora video generator integration into ChatGPT

No timeline has been set yet. For now, Sora is only available through a dedicated web app OpenAI launched in December.

Call centers are using AI for “accent translation”

According to Bloomberg, call center firm Teleperformance SE is rolling out an artificial intelligence system that “softens the accents of English-speaking Indian workers in real time,” aiming to “make them more understandable.”

Figure AI to start testing humanoid robots in homes

Figure AI plans to begin testing its humanoid household robots this year, moving up its timeline by two years, according to CEO Brett Adcock.

Opera introduces browser-integrated AI agent

Opera has introduced a new AI agent called Browser Operator, designed to perform tasks for users directly within the browser.

That’s a wrap!

Thanks for sticking with us to the end! Let’s stay connected on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Not subscribed yet? Sign up here and send it to a colleague or friend!

See you in our next edition!

Gina 👩🏻‍💻