Meta Ray-Ban Celebrity Voices: From Least to Most Annoying
This week, an update to Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses introduced the ability to replace the regular AI voice with a celebrity voice. If you’ve ever wanted John Cena, Awkwafina, Keegan-Michael Key or Kristen Bell to tell you your battery level was 33%, you’re in luck.
As you can see from my review , I really like my Meta Ray-Bans, but I really hate it when celebrities are placed where they don’t belong. Back in the pre-smartphone days, I had a TomTom turn-by-turn device with the ability to replace the device’s voice, and I quickly realized I didn’t want to go on a trip with John Cleese giving directions in character. like an arrogant British fool. So I looked through the selection of stars wearing Meta’s glasses with trepidation.
I’m happy (and a little shocked) to report that Meta’s AI use of celebrity voices isn’t exactly annoying. Meta has decided that its new voices imitate the tone, inflection, and pitch of celebrities, but don’t try to imitate the celebrities’ personalities , so you’re essentially just getting a few new voices instead of a whole gimmick.
How to Install Celebrity Voices on Meta Ray Ban Smart Glasses
Installing new voices on your glasses is very easy. Here’s step by step:
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Open the Meta View app on your phone.
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Click Meta AI.
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Click Language & Voice.
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Select a celebrity, then click “Save” in the top right corner.
Once installed, your glasses work exactly the same as before. Say “hey Meta” and ask him to read a sign, give a weather forecast or tell a joke, and he will do it, but in a different, semi-recognizable voice.
Do Meta AI Celebrity Voices Really Sound Like Celebrities?
As a test of how close the AI gets to the sounds of celebrities, I asked my wife to test all four voices and see if she could figure out who was speaking. She got it all wrong. She was sure John Cena was Jon Hamm and thought Awkwafina might be an NPR host. So they’re not that much like celebrities, especially because they don’t say the things that celebrities would say.
Meta Ray-Ban Celebrity Voices Ranked From Least to Most Annoying
While these star voices aren’t as annoying as they could be, they are still annoying. Some celebrities are simply more amenable to AI research than others. Here are my ratings, in order from least to most annoying.
Awkwafina: AIAwkwafina’s mid-tone and natural-sounding intonation are the least computer-like. I made her voice my default voice. Verdict: not annoying.
John Cena : The wrestler-turned-actor has a distinctive deep voice that works well as an AI agent, but Cena’s AI sometimes sounds very fake and computer-like. Verdict: A little annoying.
Kristen Bell: This actress has a naturally high voice, and her intonation and accent often take it to even higher registers. There’s something about the AI version of Bell that sounds like she’s singing, as if she’s talking to a child. Verdict: annoying.
Keegan-Michael Key : I’m a fan of Key, so I’m sorry to report that he’s the worst AI agent. The AI Keegan-Michael Key looks condescending and impatient, as if he’s influencing perfect pronunciation to make you feel bad. Verdict: very unpleasant.
What if you want your meta glasses to have the personality of a celebrity?
I was a little disappointed that Meta doesn’t try to imitate the personalities of the celebrities whose voices are licensed, because that would be funny. But then I remembered it was AI, so I fiddled around with the prompts, saying things like: “Hey Meta. Tell me a story using Awkwafina’s personality.” It gave me the “why would anyone want that ?” experience that I craved, and I found that trying to make your glasses speak to you like a B-list celebrity is very… momentous.
A.I. Awkwafina says “like” and “bro” a lot and told me this story: “Bruh, I was at the bodega the other day and I saw this dude, yeah, and he was trying to pay with a coupon for a free meal. cat. Yes. Verdict: Annoyingly trendy and doesn’t even make sense.
AI Cena often calls you “brother” and seems to only talk about the fight and himself as a hero. Example story: “I stepped into the ring, brother, and made a dramatic change in attitude towards the villain, saving the day for the good people.” Verdict: Annoyingly selfish.
A.I. Bell tells home stories about her family, such as: “I was trying to cook a romantic dinner, but I ended up setting the tea towels on fire, and my husband just laughed and said, ‘I guess that’s one way to get a spark in the house.’ relationship”. Verdict: Annoyingly unrealistic story.
All stories by A.I. Keys have an urban setting and usually involve Key’s snarky comments about someone limping. He always hangs out in cafes and parks. Example: “OK. FINE. FINE. I’m at the park and this guy is playing with his dog and the dog just looks at him and says, “Are you doing this ?” Verdict: Annoyingly judgmental.