‘Deepfake’ voice tech used for good in David Beckham malaria campaign
Damian Collins, digital culture and sport select committee chair, warned in February that deepfakes were “one of the most serious threats that democracy faces”, while US senator Marco Rubio described the tech as a propaganda weapon last year.
Deepfake videos could be banned by Facebook, its chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg told US senators last year, as the company tries to crack down on the profileration of fake news.
Victor Riparbelli, chief executive and co-founder of Synthesia, said: “At Synthesia, we are reinventing the way video is produced. Our generative AI technologies can bring creative ideas to life in ways that were never possible before.”
The new campaign was created by Nick Moss and Dan Northcote-Smith, and directed by Juriaan Booij through RSA Amsterdam. Dentsu Aegis Network handles the media. Denstu and R/GA were appointed by Malaria No More in November 2017.
Matt Lodder, executive vice-president and managing director at R/GA EMEA, said:
“MALARIA IS THE WORLD’S OLDEST DISEASE; A CHILD DIES EVERY TWO MINUTES FROM IT. YET PEOPLE ARE STILL DEAF TO THIS MESSAGE.
So with this campaign, we wanted to combine our innovative approach to communications, design and technology to get malaria firmly back on the agenda.
“IT’S OUR RESPONSIBILITY AS PROFESSIONALS WORKING IN THE CREATIVE INDUSTRY TO MAKE PEOPLE SIT UP AND LISTEN, WHICH IS WHY WE HARNESSED THE POWER OF VOICE AS THE MEDIUM IN THIS WORK.”
