New ‘Cameo Kids’ Personalizes Videos From Famous Cartoon Characters With Veritone’s Synthetic Speech AI
Cameo has introduced a new set of animated celebrities offering personalized video messages for children voiced by Veritone’s synthetic speech AI. Cameo Kids will send videos starring major children’s TV stars like Thomas the Tank Engine, Blippi, the cast of CoComelon, and Santa Clause, with Veritone Voice providing the model for reading out a custom script.
Cameo Kids
The videos produced by Cameo Kids are based on a few standard scripts for events like birthdays and holidays, but with Veritone Voice generating audio in the character’s voice to fill in details like the names of the recipient, who sent it, and any other relevant details the sender wants to include. Veritone is best known for the enterprise services provided by its aiWare platform, including audio and video transcription processing and analysis. The company began working on synthetic voice generation a few years ago, eventually integrating speech recognition technology from Speechmatics and launching the Marvel.ai platform to streamline the creation and licensing of digital voices before acquiring synthetic speech startup Vocalid.
The technology allows kids to have the thrill of a direct message from characters they love without the time and resources that having the voice actors or impressionists perform each video would require. Each video costs $25, well below what videos from some of the human celebrities costs.
“With Cameo Kids, we can seamlessly onboard new animated characters from IP partners and reach an entirely new family audience — making magical moments possible from their favorite animated stars,” Cameo CEO Steven Galanis said. “Veritone has been instrumental in bringing this to life by enabling the AI voices for select characters alongside the visual asset coordination.”
Synthetic Stars
This isn’t Cameo’s first experiment with synthetic media. The Boss Baby joined Cameo last October, offering $20 custom videos using an AI-generated version of the Alec Baldwin-voiced cartoon. virtual human startup Hour On produced Boss Baby’s movements and expressions, including syncing the lips to the audio provided by synthetic speech startup Lovo. The Boss Baby is currently listed as unavailable on Cameo, but as it’s an animated character, it’s more likley the license ended, leaving the Cameo Kids stable as the only source on Cameo for animated celebrities.
“AI voice is a game-changer for children’s entertainment, providing an enabling and extending technology for content owners. In fact, without AI voice, scaling these personalized messages would not be possible,” Veritone president Ryan Steelberg said. “We’re thrilled to work with market-leading Cameo to bring new opportunities to IP owners and delight fans through videos from their favorite characters. Future possibilities are extensive and we’re excited to continue working together to enhance the fan experience.”
Follow @voicebotaiFollow @erichschwartz
Cameo Hires Boss Baby’s Virtual Clone and Synthetic Alec Baldwin Voice to Record Personal Messages
Veritone Launches Synthetic Speech Generator for Celebrities and Influencers
