There’s a lot you can do in 10 seconds, like picking up a glass of water and taking a sip or wishing someone a good morning. 10 seconds of your voice is also all that’s needed to clone the way you talk.

You may have heard about ‘AI’, as it’s all the buzz. Generally speaking, AI (“artificial intelligence”) refers to a variety of tools designed for specific tasks. AI has the power to recognise patterns, find solutions to problems, and make decisions at a much greater speed and scale than humans can.

Voice AI, also referred to as voice cloning, voice synthesis, or voice generation, is a form of AI. You could train voice AI to talk like you (or anyone for that matter) very quickly and about any topic.

Voice can be highly personal and intimate, especially when it sounds like someone you know. This can spark memory and nostalgia, but also poses questions about whether we agree to have our voices used, when, and in what contexts.

Let’s look into what voice AI is and how it is being used.

Demystifying artificial intelligence

Like any tool, AI is designed and programmed by humans. The people who create these machines give them rules to follow: “Do this; but don’t do that.”

People input a lot of data into AI tools (such as sounds, pictures, and writing) that informs the outputs (these might be realistic or fantastical sounds, pictures, and writing). Although AI outputs are generated by computer programs, they can seem indistinguishable from real-life.

Did you know? Large amounts of data are needed everyday to train AI tools. Data is being collected from across the internet, and from places you may not expect like personal messages.

You can learn to reduce your digital traces with some simple steps in this Data Detox guide: “Control Your Smartphone Data”.

AI can be used for many different purposes, for example businesses might use it to advertise their products, magazines might use it to produce content, and political candidates might use it to boost their public image.

Try it! Seek out examples of synthetic media in order to gain a better understanding of how realistic AI-generated images, videos, and voice clones can be. You can test yourself with a quiz like Berkley’s AI or Not or AI-Generated or Not. The results might surprise you.

What’s in a voice?

Voice AI offers highly beneficial uses from an accessibility-enhanced home voice assistant, allowing us with hands-free controls, to applications in entertainment, narrating podcasts, films, or books in voices that are familiar and easy to listen to.

While voice AI can give people access to multiple languages, reaching more people, it can also be incorrect, misrepresent information, or stereotype accents.

Anyone can use voice AI for just about anything. But what are some real-life examples of these tools?

Voice AI: Love it or leave it?

Learn about different uses of Voice AI and understand what supporters (love it) and opponents (leave it) have to say.

Skimming through these examples, you can see that voice AI isn’t necessarily good or bad in and of itself. Who is using it and for what purpose can make a major difference.

With countless and increasingly high-quality voice apps available for cheap and for free, anyone can clone a voice in seconds or use a library of existing voices for their own purposes. Concerns over the lack of regulations and consumer protections have been growing over the past few years.

Read more about the stories mentioned here: (1) “AI voice scams: What you need to know”, (2) “AI scam calls”

Tip: Just breathe.

Some of the voice AI-related stories you’ll read about may stress you out. Anytime you find yourself feeling stressed, set your phone face-down and do a 5-second breathing exercise.

Take two short inhales through your nose and one long exhale out of your mouth, with your lips pursed together as if you’re blowing through a straw.

It may not sound like much, but this simple breath can be enough to reduce your stress in the moment – which might clear your mind a little bit.

In a funny twist, Britain’s O2 phone company developed a voice AI in 2024, modelled after an elderly woman, called “Daisy.” This voice AI was programmed to stay on the line with scammers and ‘talk’ to them as a way to keep them away from real people. It was also used promotionally to raise awareness about how realistic voice AI can be.

Tip: Stay curious.

While there are some aspects of AI that may cause concern, you shouldn’t shut it out altogether. Reading the latest news about AI, and getting a sense of popular tools out there, can help you to understand how it works and what is possible with it. And this awareness of technological developments in turn can help you remain wise to any scammers who may try to cross your path with new flashy gimmicks.

Learn about popular scams at ScamWatch and report incidents that happen to you.

Pass it on! Encourage your friends, family, and neighbors to join you in learning about AI. Share this guide and open a space for conversations about it.

This guide was developed by Tactical Tech in collaboration with ADM+S at Swinburne University of Technology in spring 2025. Written by Safa Ghnaim with support by Liz Carrigan, Louise Hisayasu, and Dominika Knoblochová. Thank you to the team at ADM+S: Critical Capabilities for Inclusive AI: Anthony McCosker, Dominique Carlon, and Awais Hameed Khan for their research, guidance, and feedback