ElevenLabs Reader app adds licensed AI voices of dead stars

We’ve heard a lot about celebrities (living or dead) having their voices cloned without permission. But it’s good to see that there are companies out there finding ways to do it ethically.

ElevenLabs is one of them. Its consumer-facing product is an app called Reader, which launched last month and offers a range of AI voices to read articles, PDFs, newsletters and other text on phones.

Now there are four new voices from stars who are no longer with us: Judy Garland, James Dean, Burt Reynolds and Laurence Olivier.

ElevenLabs emphasized in its statement that this was all “thanks to the partnerships with their estates” – including an appreciative quote from Garland’s daughter Liza Minnelli.

“It is exciting to now have our mother’s voice available to the countless millions of people who love her,” she said. “Our family believes this will bring new fans to Mom and will also be exciting for those who already appreciate the unparalleled legacy that Mom has left and continues to leave to the world.”

“We appreciate their thoughtful approach to working with talent in the right way,” added Tina Xavie, CMO of CMG Worldwide, which manages rights for all four properties.

There is clearly the possibility that musicians’ estates could make similar arrangements.