- NBC will be using an AI version of Al Michaels for its coverage of the Paris Olympics this summer.
- According to reports, Michaels was skeptical at first, but after hearing the AI's voice, he agreed to the suggestion.
- The AI recap will be available on Peacock and will include customized highlights of the event.
The Paris Summer Olympics are set to incorporate elements of artificial intelligence.
NBC, the network that will broadcast the Summer Olympics next month, has a long list of legendary sportscasters who grace American television every few years during the Olympics.
This year, NBC is producing an AI version of Al Michaels. Those highly respected reporters.
“I was surprised, I was shocked, to be honest with you,” Michaels, 79, told Vanity Fair. “And a little scared.”
The AI version of Michaels will create a daily recap that will be distributed on NBC's streaming service, Peacock. Michaels told Vanity Fair that he was initially “very skeptical” when NBC executives approached him about the idea, but was sold after hearing his artificial voice.
“It wasn't just close to perfect, it was about 2 percent off perfect,” Michaels told Vanity Fair. “It was the kind of thing I would say in certain situations.”
The news comes amid ongoing concerns in the media industry that artificial intelligence will replace jobs. Hollywood screenwriters struck for nearly 150 days in 2023, in part to protect against AI taking over their jobs. An NBC spokesperson told CNN that Michaels was paid to use his voice to train the AI.
Others were less enthusiastic. Film director and actor Justin Bateman shared a screenshot of the news about Michaels, tagging NBC Sports in X's post and writing, “That's awful.” Among those striking out in Hollywood, Bateman previously told The Hollywood Reporter that incorporating AI into the arts is “absolutely the wrong direction.”
Other users of X have pointed out that Michaels is “still alive,” questioning the need for an AI version of him.
NBC said in a press release that the AI will “serve fans with a unique, customized playlist of highlights from the most relevant events from the previous day.”
“Each edit will feature clips from NBCU's Olympics coverage and a high-quality AI-generated narration in Michaels' voice, trained using audio from Michaels' past NBC appearances to match his distinctive expertise and pronunciation,” NBC said.
The personalized clips will consist of around 10 minutes of content, and the summaries will be reviewed by NBCU editors “for quality assurance and accuracy before the summaries are made available to users.”
The opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics will begin on July 26th.
