Amazon will begin inviting a small group of Audible narrators to train AI-generated voice clones of themselves this week, with the goal of speeding up audiobook creation for the platform. The US-only beta test was announced on Audible’s creator marketplace and will be extended to rights holders such as authors, agents, and publishers “later this year,” according to Amazon.
“There is an extensive catalog of books not yet on audio and as we explore ways to bring more books to life on Audible, we are committed to carefully balancing the interests of authors, storyteller, publisher, and listener,” Amazon said in its announcement. Beta participants will submit a voice recording to train their AI replica and retain control of the projects they want to audition for both live performances and AI-generated recordings.
Narrators can also use Amazon’s production tools to edit the pronunciation and pacing of their AI voice replica if a rights holder selects them for a project, along with checking the final production for any error or mistake. Amazon said narrators will be paid through a “Royalty Share” model on a “title-by-title basis” but did not elaborate on how much voice artists can expect to earn.
“Audible will not separately use a narrator’s voice replica for any content without their approval.”
The announcement blog says that beta participants can create a voice replica “for free,” indicating that there may be an upfront cost involved for narrators in the future if the feature becomes generally available. Any titles narrated with voice replicas will be labeled on the product detail page. “Narrators control what works are narrated in their voice replica,” Amazon said. “Audible will not separately use a narrator’s voice replica for any content without their approval.”
