Ready for Virtual Franken-stars? Soul Machines CEO Says Yes

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Soul Machines is a fascinating venture that is marrying state-of-the-art animation with artificial intelligence to create something that just might be the next big thing in entertainment.

The company has been around since 2016, having raised over $135 million from some of the leading venture capital funds in the world including Softbank. The vision Soul Machines is selling is the ability to enable consumers to interact one on one with a CGI simulation of their favorite celebrity powered by artificial intelligence.

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“Think about this way of, how we can democratize a fan experience where you can go to a website and you could have a face-to-face conversation with what we talk about as a digital twin,” said Greg Cross, CEO of Soul Machines, on the latest episode of the Variety podcast “Strictly Business.”

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Cross has lined up deals with an eclectic group of famous virtual characters both dead and alive including Marilyn Monroe, golf legend Jack Nicklaus and current K-pop sensation Mark Tuan to lead the way. All the companies needs is a few hours to capture their likeness, personality and voice, and AI works its magic, translating them into numerous language for global exploitation.

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Cross is mindful of all the controversies that have erupted in the words of social media, influencers and avatars, but he says it has made him more mindful of how to approach the marketplace.

“So as we move into this world where artificial intelligence is becoming a bigger and bigger part of it, I think that’s a fantastic thing that there is so much debate going on, and people are expressing their concern because that puts an absolute focus on providers like us to make it safe,” he said.

This episode of “Strictly Business” is the first of an hourlong two-part episode featuring Cross that will continue next week here.

“Strictly Business” is Variety’s weekly podcast featuring conversations with industry leaders about the business of media and entertainment. A new episode debuts each Wednesday and can be downloaded on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher and SoundCloud.

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