Overview
- ElevenLabs published a roughly 13-hour, fully AI-produced audiobook of Homer’s The Odyssey on June 23 using an AI recreation of Michael Caine.
- The production was made by four producers over about six weeks and features a 20-voice AI cast with AI-generated music and sound effects, and it is available for free on ElevenLabs’ ElevenReader app.
- ElevenLabs says Caine licensed his voice to its Iconic Voice Marketplace last year, was consulted on this project, approved marketing materials, and that performers are paid each time licensed voices are used.
- The release drew mixed responses from the entertainment community with some praising the technical quality and speed of AI production while others raised ethical concerns about creative quality, job displacement for voice actors, and deepfake risks.
- The project highlights a growing business model for licensed synthetic voices and could prompt tighter contract rules and industry safeguards on consent, compensation, and misuse given past controversies and a prior lawsuit settlement involving ElevenLabs.