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Multimodal
Text-to-Speech AI
Definition
Text-to-speech (TTS) AI converts written text into natural-sounding spoken audio using neural networks, with services like ElevenLabs producing increasingly human-like voices.
Why It Matters
Modern TTS has crossed the uncanny valley - generated speech is often indistinguishable from human recordings. This enables voice interfaces, audiobook narration, video voiceovers, accessibility tools, and conversational AI agents that feel natural to interact with.
Key Solutions
- ElevenLabs: Industry-leading quality, voice cloning
- OpenAI TTS: Good quality, simple API
- Play.ht: Customizable voices, podcast tools
- Amazon Polly: AWS integration, SSML support
- Google Cloud TTS: Wide language support
- Coqui: Open-source alternative
Quality Factors
- Naturalness: Prosody, rhythm, emotion
- Voice Selection: Variety and customization
- Speed Control: Speaking rate adjustment
- SSML Support: Fine-grained control
- Latency: Time to first audio chunk
- Voice Cloning: Creating custom voices
Use Cases
Voice assistants, audiobook generation, video narration, podcast production, accessibility features, language learning, and conversational AI interfaces.