Technologies

Samsung Can Now Create an AI Copy of Your Voice to Answer Calls

It’s only available in Korean for now as part of Samsung’s Bixby Text Call feature for the Galaxy S23 lineup.

Can’t answer the phone? Samsung wants to help by letting you create a replica of your voice using artificial intelligence.

The feature is only available in Korean and is part of Samsung’s Bixby Text Call service, which lets you answer a call by typing a text message instead. Samsung plans to release the voice creator tool in English later this year, a Samsung spokesperson said to CNET via email. The announcement comes after Google has used the Google Assistant to automate certain parts of the phone-calling experience. It also arrives amid a surge in interest in AI-generated content, thanks to the rise of ChatGPT.

To be clear, Samsung’s new feature is not an AI clone that answers calls entirely on your behalf. Instead, Bixby Text Call lets you type a text message to answer a phone call at times when it may not be appropriate to do so verbally. Bixby then converts your typed text to audio for the recipient.

That feature was announced last year as part of Samsung’s One UI 5 update and just became available in English after debuting in Korean. Now Samsung is launching the Bixby Custom Voice Creator for the Galaxy S23 lineup to let users record sentences that the Bixby assistant can analyze to copy their voice and tone. Samsung is positioning this as a means to customize the way Bixby Text Call converts text into audio during a call.

When the Bixby Custom Voice Creator’s AI-generated voice answers a phone call, it will let the caller know that Bixby is answering the call rather than the user, Samsung said. When asked whether Samsung has safeguards in place to prevent someone else from creating a copy of your voice through a recording, Samsung said users will need to read specific sentences to generate the custom voice.

Bixby’s text-to-speech transcription process takes place on the device itself rather than in the cloud, Samsung said when announcing Bixby Text Call last year. Audio is also deleted right after the recognition process takes place, according to the company.

Samsung said in Wednesday’s press release that this AI-generated voice will eventually be compatible with «other Samsung apps beyond phone calls,» although it didn’t say which ones. When pressed for specifics, Samsung said more details will be announced in the future.

Samsung is broadening Bixby’s functionality after Google in recent years rolled out a suite of features designed to make the phone calling experience more convenient. Its Direct My Call tool, for example, uses the Google Assistant to transcribe automated phone menus. Google updated this feature with the launch of the Pixel 7 last year.

At the same time, there’s been a deeper interest in how AI-generated content can be used in everyday tasks, resulting from the popularity of ChatGPT, the online chatbot from OpenAI that launched in late 2022. Microsoft recently incorporated the technology behind ChatGPT into its Bing search engine, which is currently available in a limited preview, to provide more conversational results. Google also announced its own ChatGPT rival called Bard.

Editors’ note: CNET is using an AI engine to create some personal finance explainers that are edited and fact-checked by our editors. For more, see this post.

Technologies

Samsung’s Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 Might Come in 5G and 4G Cellular Models

If the rumor proves true, the 5G Galaxy Watch Ultra would rival the 5G-enabled $799 Apple Watch Ultra 3 that debuted last fall.

Samsung’s next high-end Galaxy Watch could support faster 5G speeds, but if this leak is true, it will depend on where you live. The rumored Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 might come in 5G and 4G cellular models, with availability for each smartwatch depending on the country.

According to the Dutch website Galaxy Club (and spotted by SamMobile), Samsung’s servers may have revealed a series of model numbers that point to 5G, 4G and Wi-Fi-enabled editions of the next Galaxy Watch Ultra, which would succeed the original model that debuted in 2024.

A representative for Samsung did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Galaxy Club website speculates that the 5G edition would be sold in the US and Korean markets, while the 4G edition would sell in the rest of the world. In the US, a 5G version of the Galaxy Watch Ultra would rival the 5G-enabled $799 Apple Watch Ultra 3, which debuted last fall. The 4G edition would have broader compatibility worldwide, since the earlier network is far more established.

It will likely be a few months until we hear anything official about the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2. Samsung typically unveils its new watches in the summer alongside its Galaxy Z Fold and Z Flip foldable phones. Last year, Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Watch 8 and the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, but otherwise left the prior 2024 Ultra in the lineup for those looking for a larger 47mm smartwatch.

Technologies

2 Cases Show Supreme Court Isn’t Holding ISPs Responsible for Piracy

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for April 8, #1032

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for April 8, No. 1032.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle is kind of tough. The purple category is a fun one, once you see the connection. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: In the group.

Green group hint: Appearance details.

Blue group hint: Often found in gyms.

Purple group hint: They help you see.