AI Lab: French Billionaire Xavier Niel Takes on ChatGPT, Reveals Voice Assistant with Thick French Accent

A recently unveiled voice assistant by a French artificial intelligence research facility, financially supported by billionaire Xavier Niel, exhibited a range of human-like emotions, resembling a project previously delayed by safety apprehensions from OpenAI.

Kyutai, a non-profit AI organization established last year, introduced its Moshi service during an event in Paris. Researchers at the lab claimed that their system can express 70 different emotions and manners. They demonstrated the assistant providing guidance on scaling Mt. Everest and performing a self-composed poem in a distinct French accent.

Describing the innovation, Kyutai’s CEO Patrick Pérez stated, “Moshi thinks while it talks.” He expressed confidence in Moshi’s potential to revolutionize human-machine communication.

The newly unveiled assistant poses a fresh challenge to OpenAI’s ChatGPT, a renowned chatbot in the industry. Various startups and tech giants like Anthropic, Cohere, and Google’s Alphabet Inc. are swiftly developing models to rival OpenAI’s GPT-4, despite concerns raised by experts regarding the risks associated with such advancing technology.

In a recent development, OpenAI presented a voice assistant for ChatGPT Plus users with enhanced image-recognition capabilities and rapid responses. Initially set for imminent release, the product faced a delay until autumn without the inclusion of previously showcased video and screen-sharing attributes.

Furthermore, OpenAI encountered criticism for featuring an AI voice resembling actress Scarlett Johansson, leading to its removal following legal actions by the actress.

Kyutai intends to unveil the assistant’s models and research as open-source technology, emphasizing the real-time nature of Moshi. The organization described the new service as an “experimental prototype,” with plans to disclose the model and research soon.

Launched in November with €300 million backing, Kyutai attracted investments from Niel, billionaire Rodoladé, and Google chairman Eric. Pérez, a former Valeo SA executive, recruited experts from Google DeepMind and Meta Platforms Inc. for the lab. Niel expressed optimism about Europe’s potential in AI advancement, praising Kyutai’s products as globally competitive. The lab’s Chief Science Officer, Hervé Jou, briefly addressed measures, highlighting the utilization of indexing and watermarking tools to trace audio generated by its AI.

Kyutai collaborated with a voice actress known as Alice, whose full identity remains undisclosed, to train its innovative model.

source:https://fortune.com/europe/2024/07/04/ai-lab-french-billionaire-xavier-niel-takes-on-chatgpt-reveals-voice-assistant-with-thick-french-accent/