NBC uses artificial intelligence to recreate Al Michaels’ voice for the 2024 Paris Olympics

NBC will bring back sports reporter Al Michaels for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, but with a surprise.

This year, the network will use generative artificial intelligence to recreate Mr. Michaels’ iconic voice. The AI-generated voice will deliver tailored Olympics recaps to Peacock subscribers during the Games, writes the Hollywood Reporter.

At a press conference in Studio 8H at NBC’s headquarters at 30 Rockefeller Center, the company announced the new offering, which it calls “your daily Olympics recap on Peacock.” The feature will present users with highly customized highlight playlists narrated by Mr. Michaels — or at least an AI voice that closely approximates the sportscaster.

The personalized experience includes Mr. Michaels greeting users by name and highlighting sports that match their interests. Users can further customize the highlights to focus on viral moments, athlete backstories or other categories, with each pack lasting approximately 10 minutes.

“When I was asked about it, I was skeptical, but of course curious,” Michaels told the reporter. “Then I saw a demonstration that explained in detail what they were planning to do. I said, ‘I’m in.'”

Mr. Michaels has been part of NBC’s Olympic coverage since 2010 and previously worked as the lead live commentator for NBC Sunday Night Football. He currently works in the booth for Amazon’s Thursday Night Football.

To address concerns about the accuracy and context of generative AI, a team of NBC Sports editors reviews all content before it is added to summaries. This review process includes checking the pronunciation and emphasis of names and events, which provides an additional safeguard against potential errors, the reporter wrote.