iOS 17 Will Let You Create a Voice Sounding Like You in Just 15 Minutes

Apple this week previewed new iPhone, iPad, and Mac accessibility features coming later this year. One feature that has received a lot of attention in particular is Personal Voice, which will allow those at risk of losing their ability to speak to "create a voice that sounds like them" for communicating with family, friends, and others.

Personal Voice iPhone Feature
Those with an iPhone, iPad, or newer Mac will be able to create a Personal Voice by reading a randomized set of text prompts aloud until 15 minutes of audio has been recorded on the device. Apple said the feature will be available in English only at launch, and uses on-device machine learning to ensure privacy and security.

Personal Voice will be integrated with another new accessibility feature called Live Speech, which will let iPhone, iPad, and Mac users type what they want to say to have it be spoken out loud during phone calls, FaceTime calls, and in-person conversations.

Apple said Personal Voice is designed for users at risk of losing their ability to speak, such as those with a recent diagnosis of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) or other conditions that can progressively impact speaking ability. Like other accessibility features, however, Personal Voice will be available to all users. The feature will likely be added to the iPhone with iOS 17, which should be unveiled next month and released in September.

"At the end of the day, the most important thing is being able to communicate with friends and family," said Philip Green, who was diagnosed with ALS in 2018 and is a member of the ALS advocacy organization Team Gleason. "If you can tell them you love them, in a voice that sounds like you, it makes all the difference in the world — and being able to create your synthetic voice on your iPhone in just 15 minutes is extraordinary."

Related Forums: iOS 17, iPadOS 17

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Top Rated Comments

TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
26 months ago
This is a very cool feature but could potentially be used against it if it was ever to be hacked. ?
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zakarhino Avatar
26 months ago
Can't make my mind up if I would find this endearing or creepy to be honest.
Score: 32 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Kevin2055 Avatar
26 months ago
This WILL be abused by scammers.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
borntrouble Avatar
26 months ago
This is both an exceptional and scary feature at the same.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
klasma Avatar
26 months ago
[HEADING=2]iOS 17 Will Let You Create a Voice Sounding Like You[/HEADING]

I can assure you that nobody wants that. ;)
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AppleFan91 Avatar
26 months ago


[HEADING=2]iOS 17 Will Let You Create a Voice Sounding Like You[/HEADING]

I can assure you that nobody wants that. ;)

Err ... am I missing something here ?

Can't you just leave a voice memo in iMessage ???

Bad idea!

Seems like a very tiny niche to me, but… I guess it’s technically impressive, sure.
I think a lot of people are missing the point here in the comments. This is an accessibility feature. This isn’t for the masses to use. It’s for those that may be losing their ability to speak.

I lost a loved one in 2012 to a disease similar (but more aggressive) to ALS. It would have meant the world to “hear” them vs them having to point at a letter board to indicate what they wanted.

As someone who may experience this same disease (genetic and it’s a flip of a coin since a parent had it) - I really appreciate something like this after watching my aunt and father lose their voices and ability to speak.

If anything - this is when technology is at its absolute best. Not making TikTok videos, selfies, scrolling through FB or whatever - but actively improving the life of someone.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)