Key points:
- A man in St. Louis used artificial intelligence (AI) to recreate his late father’s voice as a Christmas present for his mother.
- He initially hesitated about the idea but was inspired by other people who had successfully used AI to recreate the voices of loved ones.
- He used text-to-speech software to recreate his father’s voice and combined it with photos of him and his mother into a video book.
- His mother was deeply moved by the gift and he believes it will make it easier for her to get through the holiday season.
Son uses AI to recreate late father’s voice for special Christmas present
For Christmas this year, a man from St. Louis decided to use artificial intelligence (AI) to recreate his late father’s voice as a unique present for his mother. Phillip Willett, the creator behind The Content Guy media company, shared a TikTok video featuring the creation, which quickly went viral with over 3 million views.
Willett was initially hesitant about the idea of using AI, but his wife suggested it, and he found a “whole community” of people online who had successfully used AI to recreate the voices of loved ones. He used ElevenLabs’ text-to-speech software to recreate his father’s voice, starting with the words “Hi, honey,” which his father had often said in his life. When he heard the program say those words in his father’s voice, he got chills and decided to move forward with the project.
Throughout the creation process, it was important to Willett to get his late father’s voice just right. His father, John Willett, had passed away in 2022 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and he was Willett’s “hero.” Willett wanted the video to feel like a portal into his parents’ relationship, so he combined the recreated voice with photos of his parents into a video book.
Willett couldn’t wait to present the final product to his mother, Trish Willett, and filmed her emotional reaction, which he shared on TikTok. “The video doesn’t show it, but it’s probably a 10-minute hug after that,” he said. “I don’t think we moved for at least five minutes, and we were both just crying.” He believes that the gift will make it easier for his mother to get through the holiday season because she has been reminded of her late husband and knows that he is always with her.
Willett and his family were amazed by how much the recreated voice sounded like his father, and they believe that using generative AI for good can be a meaningful way to honor the memory of loved ones. He encourages others to explore this option if they are interested, emphasizing the importance of presenting the gift in a cinematic way.
In conclusion, using AI to recreate the late father’s voice was a deeply meaningful Christmas present for Willett’s mother. The recreated voice brought her comfort and reminded her of her late husband’s presence. Willett hopes that his experience will inspire others to use generative AI for good and create similar gifts for their own loved ones.