AI doesn’t just exist in the lab, it’s already solving a range of problems in the real world. In this episode, Hannah encounters a realistic recreation of her voice by WaveNet, the voice synthesising system that powers the Google Assistant and helps people with speech difficulties and illnesses regain their voices. Hannah also discovers how ‘deepfake’ technology can be used to improve weather forecasting and how DeepMind researchers are collaborating with Liverpool Football Club, aiming to take sports to the next level.

For questions or feedback on the series, message us on Twitter @DeepMind or email podcast@deepmind.com.

Interviewees: DeepMind’s Demis Hassabis, Raia Hadsell, Karl Tuyls, Zach Gleicher & Jackson Broshear; Niall Robinson of the UK Met Office

Credits

Presenter: Hannah Fry

Series Producer: Dan Hardoon

Production support: Jill Achineku

Sounds design: Emma Barnaby

Music composition: Eleni Shaw

Sound Engineer: Nigel Appleton

Editor: David Prest

Commissioned by DeepMind

Thank you to everyone who made this season possible!

Further reading:

A generative model for raw audio, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/wavenet-generative-model-raw-audio

WaveNet case study, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/research/case-studies/wavenet

Using WaveNet technology to reunite speech-impaired users with their original voices, DeepMind:| https://deepmind.com/blog/article/Using-WaveNet-technology-to-reunite-speech-impaired-users-with-their-original-voices

Project Euphonia, Google Research: https://sites.research.google/euphonia/about/

Nowcasting the next hour of rain, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/nowcasting

Now DeepMind is using AI to transform football, WIRED: https://www.wired.co.uk/article/deepmind-football-liverpool-ai

Advancing sports analytics through AI, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/advancing-sports-analytics-through-ai

MetOffice, BBC: https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/

The village ‘washed on to the map’, BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-28523053

Michael Fish got the storm of 1987 wrong, Sky News:

https://news.sky.com/story/michael-fish-got-the-storm-of-1987-wrong-but-modern-supercomputers-may-have-missed-it-too-11076659#:~:text=In%20a%20lunchtime%20broadcast%20on,%2C%22%20he%20confidently%20told%20viewers

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