The Commercial Break – "My AI Voice" (January 16, 2026)
Overview
In this lively, freewheeling episode of The Commercial Break, hosts Bryan Green and Krissy Hoadley riff on the encroaching presence of AI in their creative lives—particularly voice cloning and language translation for social media. From Meta’s voracious appetite for podcaster voices to their own bumbling adventures with AI tools, Bryan and Krissy offer their signature brand of chaotic, self-aware humor. Along the way, they detour into personal anecdotes, TikTok dads, “shrinkflation,” TV memories, celebrity encounters, and music nostalgia. The episode doubles as both a playful meditation on the AI/content economy and a peek into the delightful messiness of the hosts' lives.
Main Discussion Points and Insights
1. Selling Out to AI: Would You Sell Your Voice?
[00:01–01:20, 15:02–15:50]
- Bryan admits they were approached by companies offering to buy their podcast catalog to train AI language models, but turned it down.
- He now jokes that Meta is probably using their voices for free:
“And now I'm just giving it to Meta for free. So there you go. Go ahead, Meta.” — Bryan [01:15]
- Explores the anxiety and resignation creators feel over losing control of their work in the AI era.
2. Life’s Inconveniences & Welcome Weather Banter
[01:39–06:31]
- Weather report: “The feels like temperature this morning was 11.” — Krissy [01:46]
- Bryan recounts a string of home disasters—with special focus on car troubles, relentless noise, and a lack of “peace.”
- Lampoons the “check engine” saga and the dealership’s slow diagnostics, fantasizing about “ChatGPT for cars.”
3. The Menace and Magic of Shrinkflation
[06:31–07:48]
- Discusses how products now cost drastically more while containing less—a phenomenon labeled as “shrinkflation.”
- Bryan riffs, Donald Trump–style, about math:
“That's 28,000% more. Like Donald Trump would say people are making 12, 50,000% more than they were last year. … I'm no math genius, but I'm not sure that's how math works.” — Bryan [07:27]
4. The Lonely Life of a Podcaster vs. Instant Social Media Feedback
[08:13–09:48]
- Bryan reflects on how podcasting is lonely:
“Podcasting is a lonely venture because you get feedback, but it often comes days later. … It’s not a faucet, it’s a trickle.” — Bryan [08:23]
- Contrasts it with the quick gratification of social media.
5. AI Voice Translation: The Meta Experience
[10:40–15:48]
- Instagram prompted Bryan to dub his videos into multiple languages by cloning his voice. He plays several AI-generated samples:
- “They give you the accent, but it sounds like me, just doing an accent.” — Bryan [13:26]
- Amused but uneasy about Meta’s capabilities:
“It's very interesting that Meta can just take your voice, clone it, put it into a different language, and it sounds pretty cool.” — Bryan [14:08]
- Acknowledges the illusion of privacy:
“If you don't think Meta's already got my voice... That's foolish.” — Bryan [14:50]
6. Skepticism and Shortcomings of AI
[17:08–23:44]
- Entertains a viral story of ChatGPT refusing to spell “strawberry” correctly, showing pitfalls of current AI.
- Expresses that despite the advancements, AI is still just “a really smart search engine.”
- AI as an analytics coach: Bryan describes how AI is almost too positive, always affirming his creative work even if unwarranted:
“...It wants to tell me that I'm the greatest creator that ever lived. And I know that's not true... it's like you have passed the ultimate algorithm test.” — Bryan [22:58]
- Krissy wishes AI would just deliver tough love (“You're going in the wrong direction. Do not do that.” [25:43]).
7. Nostalgia, Musical Tangents & AI Music
[30:36–34:46]
- The hosts reminisce about 80s/90s pop music—wrongly attributing a song, spoofing their own errors:
“Brian got it wrong again.” — Krissy [30:16]
- Bryan uses AI music platforms to make custom show tunes, but notes legal restrictions and music industry clampdowns.
8. Celebrity Encounters and Podcast Guests
[52:19–62:45]
- The duo recount their biggest show guests (Nicky Jam, Steve-O, Margaret Cho, Tom Papa, Larry the Cable Guy).
- Detailed story of getting breaking news from Nicky Jam (about not retiring), only to have his management bury their scoop until he could unveil it on national TV.
- Personal encounters: Krissy once shared an elevator with Matt Damon in Boulder, CO.
- Lighthearted takes on “brushes with greatness” and how these moments quickly fade for celebrities.
9. Pop Culture, Comfort TV, and Streaming Faves
[64:08–66:37]
- Krissy and Bryan recommend shows—“The Fall,” “Night Manager,” “Jack Ryan,” and reflect on the comfort of rewatching “Seinfeld” and “The West Wing”:
“There I am every night, night after night, watching the West Wing... I could literally tell you every line from every episode.” — Bryan [66:33]
- Discuss the need for one foot on the ground in TV writing for “believability.”
10. Meta-Reflection on Community and Content
[66:57–68:09]
- Importance of real-time chat, social media feedback.
- Promoting their live streams, Instagram, free stickers.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
On AI voice translation:
“I could go to sleep to my own voice in a different language. That's very interesting.” — Bryan [13:32]
-
On giving up control to AI:
“Our sense of privacy … just gone. We actually got approached by some of these companies a couple of years ago... they wanted to buy our catalog... So they could strip our voices and train their language models on it.” — Bryan [14:57]
-
On AI’s relentless positivity:
“I want to believe you. I really do. Because I love when people blow smoke up my ass. I'm not, I'm not inhuman. But I also understand you're just made to do that.” — Bryan [22:59]
-
On the grind of content creation:
"We’ve been so conditioned to do six hours of content a week that now we’re doing two. … We’re marathon runners and we’re doing sprints now, and that doesn’t feel good." — Bryan [28:15]
-
On the loneliness of podcasting:
“If you weren’t here, I’m not sure I would ever know what’s funny.” — Bryan to Krissy [09:48]
-
On nostalgia and music fandom:
“My mom would listen to B 98.5. And then she got the Phantom of the Opera CD, the original cast. … And so every time I would start the car for a period of time, this is what would play...” — Bryan [42:36]
-
On comfort TV:
“It’s comfort food. I think, wow. We could have a democracy again someday. And Jed Bartlett will be in charge. President Bartlett.” — Bryan [66:37]
Timestamps for Key Segments
- Intro & AI catalog buyout story: 00:01–01:20, 15:02–15:50
- House chaos & car drama: 02:28–06:31
- Shrinkflation & cost of living riff: 06:31–07:48
- Podcast feedback vs. social media feedback: 08:13–09:48
- AI voice translations & Meta experiment: 10:40–15:48
- AI's inaccuracies (strawberry story): 17:08–18:13
- AI over-encouragement and analytics: 21:18–24:38
- Music nostalgia & AI-generated songs: 30:36–34:46
- Celebrity encounters (Nicky Jam, Matt Damon, Larry the Cable Guy): 52:19–62:45
- Pop culture/TV recs: 64:08–66:37
- Community, live chat reflection: 66:57–68:09
Tone & Style
- Self-deprecating, fast-paced, and often meta; hosts poke fun at themselves, their missteps, and the unrefined nature of the show.
- Frequent comedic interludes (musical parodies, song misattributions).
- Playful but candid about both the frustrations and fun of creative life in 2026.
Final Thoughts
This episode showcases The Commercial Break at its best—irreverent, insightful, and unfiltered. Bryan and Krissy blend hilarious gripes about modern life with genuine reflections on media, technology, and their evolving relationship with the audience. AI may be learning from them, but their chemistry remains unmistakably human.
Best to you!