She Lost Her Voice Following A Tumor Operation, But AI Technology Allowed Her Voice To Be Heard Again Through Her Phone
It’s hard to imagine being a normal young woman, laughing, singing, and chatting with your friends, to all of a sudden lose your ability to speak normally.
That’s what happened to Lexi Bogan, a young woman from Rhode Island who lost her voice after an operation to remove a tumor near her brain. However, thanks to some powerful AI technology, her voice can once again be heard through her phone.
Lexi, now 21, was enjoying life as a young woman when she learned she needed an operation to remove a life-threatening vascular tumor located near the back of her brain last year.
That August, doctors successfully removed the tumor during a 10-hour surgery. Lexi was placed on a breathing tube for the early stages of her recovery, but when the breathing tube was removed, her speech was impaired.
Months after her surgery, Lexi still struggled to speak, barely able to say “hello” to her friends and family. While the long surgery managed to remove her tumor and save her life, it took away her voice.
However, doctors from Rhode Island’s Lifespan Hospital group then introduced Lexi to an artificial intelligence program called OpenAI, whose Voice Engine technology was able to give her voice back.
Using a 15-second cooking tutorial video Lexi recorded for a high school project, OpenAI created a voice-cloning technology that allows Lexi to type phrases into a custom-built app and have them repeated in an audio clip using her voice.
For instance, Lexi can go through drive-thrus, type her order into the OpenAI app, and then have her order read out in her voice.
The technology is truly fascinating, as the AI-generated voice recording sounds incredibly realistic. Lexi can even type in the words “ha ha” and hear what sounds like her old laugh.
Drobot Dean – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual person
While this kind of advanced AI technology is extremely controversial, as we don’t want it getting into the hands of scammers and people with bad intentions, it’s good to remember the benefits it can have at the same time.
Now, Lexi feels like she has part of her identity back and no longer has to deal with the powerless feeling of her friends and family speaking for her.
As Lexi continues using the app, her progress and experience with it will help the software developers work on the technology, making it more accessible and realistic for future use.
While Lexi may never be able to physically speak like she used to again, it’s amazing to see how she can use this technology to help her voice be heard in everyday scenarios.
We’re so happy for Lexi and her family and wish them all the best as she continues to recover and live a happy and healthy life!
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More About:Human Interest
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