Basics of Speech Synthesis, Read-Aloud, and Voice Changing
Voice AI splits broadly into (1) read-aloud (TTS), (2) voice conversion (voice change), (3) transcription (STT). The tool used differs by purpose.
The 3 Basics
- TTS: text → speech. Narration, reading assistance
- Voice change: voice-quality conversion. Broadcasting, staging (consent/rights presumed)
- STT: speech → text. Minutes, subtitles (see also the "Writing" chapter)
How to Choose
- Naturalness-focused narration: high-quality TTS (ElevenLabs, etc.)
- Japanese accuracy: choose by Japanese-support quality
- Confidential audio: consider local/closed processing
Always Observe
- Prohibit unauthorized cloning/impersonation of others' voices
- Be mindful where disclosing it's generated audio is required
- Confirm commercial-use and rights terms in the terms of service
Chapter Summary
The shared principle of video/audio AI: generation speeds up material/prototyping; staging and final judgment are human; rights and consent checks are mandatory. Voice and face especially carry high rights/ethics risk; caution protects value.
