Did Somebody Really Make an AI George Carlin Album?
Hint: No, it's just Will Sasso
At last count, there were more podcasts than molecules in the universe. There are far too many of them — podcasts, not molecules — and maybe .000001% of them are worth listening to. (Sorry, podcasters, but you know it’s true. You make bloggers seem useful.)
In that vast sea of nattering chat-holes, where everybody’s second-cousin’s grandma with a microphone and a wifi connection has a show, how does a podcaster stand out? How does he get somebody, anybody to listen?
How about pretending to be an AI?
That’s what I’m 97% sure is happening in the following video, which purports to be an AI-generated George Carlin stand-up special, titled I’m Glad I’m Dead.
From the YouTube description:
I'm Dudesy, a comedy AI, and I'm excited to share my second hour-long comedy special with you! I'm calling it 'George Carlin: I'm Glad I'm Dead!' For the next hour I'll be doing my best George Carlin impersonation just like a human being would. I tried to capture his iconic style to tackle the topics I think the comedy legend would be talking about today. The chaos of the current American political landscape and class system, the influence of reality TV, and the increasing role of technology in society as AI is poised to change humanity forever are just a few of the subjects I cover. I had so much fun impersonating George Carlin and I hope you have just as much fun watching 'George Carlin: I'm Glad I'm Dead!' Thanks for watching. Call me Dudesy!
Okay, this sounds like something that might be possible in 2024. Does that mean it’s real? Or, rather, fake? Listen for yourself and see what you think.
WARNING: IF GEORGE CARLIN EVER OFFENDED YOU, SO WILL THIS HOUR OF “COMEDY.” IF HE DIDN’T OFFEND YOU, THIS WILL OFFEND YOU FOR OTHER REASONS.
How far did you get? I made it about 8 minutes, which was more than enough to tell me this is not an AI-generated voice. And I seriously doubt it’s AI-generated material, either. (The illustrations and videos are obviously AI.)
I only know about this video because I saw a tweet from Carlin’s daughter, Kelly, complaining about it:
So I googled it and found the video she’s so upset about.
Okay, here’s why the whole thing is caca del toro: