Slovenská sporiteľňa does more than offer financial services for the nation of Slovakia. The bank is pursuing the goal to raise optimism of Slovaks in these times of crises. The bank inspires people to believe in future of Slovakia and its prosperity. To do so, Slovenská sporiteľňa needed the voice of an iconic personality to breathe life into their marketing initiatives.
Imagine the surprise of hearing the voice of a beloved icon long after their last words were spoken. This seemingly impossible feat became a reality when Respeecher joined forces with Slovenská sporiteľňa. Together, we utilized AI-driven voice synthesis technology to revive the voice of Július Satinský, a legendary Slovak comedian, actor, and writer.
The biggest challenge, however, was that Július Satinský passed away in the early '00s and could not personally lend his iconic voice to the short movie.
The Magic Behind the Voice and Overcoming Obstacles
Reviving renowned voices of the past, such as Luke Skywalker in Mandalorian, Vince Lombardi for Super Bowl LV, or even Richard Nixon for the Moon Landing Disaster speech, is what Respeecher excels at.
However, when the Zaraguza agency approached us, they expressed some skepticism. Initially, the production team was unsure if there were any high-quality AI models of the Slovak language available, and they were also concerned about the poor quality of the original recordings of Satinský’s voice.
It quickly became evident that our Emmy Award-winning crew had a new challenge in this groundbreaking project of resurrecting Satinský's distinctive voice. Several obstacles stood in our way, including training the AI model in the Slovak language and then working with the analog recordings from the 1990s.
First, we obtained permission from Satinský's family and the voice rights holders. Then, we carefully selected 40 minutes of clear audio content from hours of old voice recordings to train the AI model. The samples' quality was less than ideal since they predated modern digital recording technology.
After two weeks of intensive training, the model mastered the phonetics and unique Slovak sounds of Satinský's voice. Then, Respeecher applied the AI-generated voice of Satinský to the recording of the popular contemporary Slovakian voice actor Michal Hudak. Following a few rounds of feedback-driven edits, the final version was sent for approval.
A Triumph in Voice Synthesis
The project was a resounding success, as Satinský's relatives confirmed that the AI-generated voice closely resembled his. This achievement showcased the potential of AI-driven voice synthesis to preserve iconic voices of the past so that people today can experience the charisma and charm of these legendary personalities.
"To be honest, I was worried up until the last minute and didn't believe that my father's voice could be used in a project like this. When they sent me the record and I played it for the first time, I had goosebumps running down my spine — it was my father's voice, just as if he was with us today. It wasn't just a similar voice — it was his voice!" said Lucia Molnár Satinska, Satinský's daughter and proprietor of his voice.
The Results
The successful recreation of Július Satinský's voice is a testament to the power of AI-driven voice synthesis. When used ethically and with proper consent, this innovative technology delivers immense value in preserving history and enhancing creative content, bringing legends back to life for generations to come.
The short movie was published on YouTube in October 2022, and within half a year, it enjoyed almost 3 million views and was highly acclaimed by Slovakian viewers. Thanks to the Július Satinský's voice the advert has become the most known banking ad in five years. You can watch it for yourself here:
