But will cheaper—and less engaging—AI voices win out?
In what could prove to be a turning point in the ongoing conflict between human performers and artificially generated ones, at least where explicit content is concerned, the audio erotica platform Quinn has started hiring an impressive roster of A-list celebrities to narrate their stories.
As reported by the UK-based Mirror, Andrew Scott, who portrayed the villainous Moriarty in the BBC Sherlock series, Grey’s Anatomy favorite Jesse Williams, Christopher Briney from The Summer I Turned Pretty, and The Hunger Games’ Tom Blyth are among Quinn’s recently acquired readers.
Quinn’s increasing popularity appears to match the rise of sites employing AI to give voice to their erotic tales, such as My Spicy Vanilla, which can also write as well as read user-customized sexy fiction.
Meanwhile, Dipsea, Bloom, and Emjoy share Quinn’s preference for people over algorithms. It’s difficult to say which approach may eventually dominate the audio erotica market—and whether AI or human readers will be excited or disappointed by the winner.
Tell me a dirty story
At first glance … Well, hearing today’s most sophisticated text-to-voice software systems still sounds less authentic.
From missing nuances, mispronouncing words, and a distinct lack of performative zest to sounding distinctly mechanical if not flat-out bored, AI clearly has a long way to go before they’ll be able to pass any sort of verbal Turning Test easily.
Remember, AI-created content is still in its relative infancy, having only been released to the public a few years ago—and in that time, it’s made remarkable progress.
RECOMMENDED READ: Will Snapchat’s AR Glasses Stifle Erotic Imagination or Open Exciting New Literary Possibilities?
Case in point: the emergence of Deepfake images, where it’s nearly impossible to tell the real from the artificially generated, was once a vague threat that national and local governments have been forced to outlaw.
So while Quinn and other audio erotica platforms may prefer human readers, there’s a very real possibility that, in the near future, might realize that AI has become just as good—and, more importantly, far less expensive.
Listen to my voice
It’s uncomfortable to realize AIs might become as good as human performers, and possibly even better, and that it is probably inevitable.
Sure, as with AI-generated erotica, the takeover isn’t exactly right around the corner, but then many people said the same about Deepfakes, companion chatbots, and many other miraculous innovations we’ve become—or maybe sometimes have become—used to.
But all these AI breakthroughs—and the many more yet to come—are tools. And like every other one we’ve developed, they only work if they make doing something—or our lives—better.
You can hear it coming
The same, of course, is true with AI. Right now, they’re obviously cheaper than hiring human readers—and more often than not, it shows. So, until we can’t tell the difference, flesh-and-blood performers don’t have to worry about losing their jobs.
Even so, when that day does arrive, it’s a safe bet they won’t be made completely obsolete, as radio didn’t kill Broadway, and television didn’t doom theaters. People still read despite the Internet, and performers will continue to regale us with their lusciously sexy voices.
Returning to whether this is going to be good or not for those of us who enjoy listening to steamy tales, it’s hard to predict. Though what is highly probable is that, somewhere down the road, AI will get to the point where its voice and our human voices become completely indistinguishable.
But when this audio erotica singularity goes from when to now, it might show up bearing all sorts of sexy gifts.
For example, with the artist’s consent, you might hear your choice of spicy tale narrated by your preferred star of stage and screen, including a simulated version of AI voices performing the dialogue.
By the same token, you also may have the option to formulate your own mix of tone and timbre: a little bit of Cumberbatch, a smattering of Keith David, a smidge of Judy Dench, and viola, you’d have the ideal voice guaranteed to hit all your pleasure points.
Or, if you’d rather, you can always have your ears caressed by a bona fide human—the choice is, and forever will be, yours.
Image Sources: Depositphotos
