Following the success of the IBC Accelerators Project on synthetic humans in 2023, John Maxwell Hobbs caught up with one of the project leaders to discuss subsequent progress and wider market adoption.
One of the eight IBC Accelerator projects in 2023 looked at ‘synthetic humans.’ A synthetic human differs from a traditional CGI animated character in that they are intended to function in real-time in response to a variety of data inputs. They can take several different forms, from a simple text-based chatbot to fully synthesised voices and video personas. For example, the two demos from the Accelerator project brought an historical figure, the opera singer Maria Calas, back to ‘virtual’ life and used voice synthesis to vocalise what a presenter was communicating using British sign language.
Michael Davey, Founder and Technologist at Michael Davey Consulting, was project lead on the second workstream looking at presenting weather forecasts in British Sign Language. Discussing industry developments in the area since the project concluded, he says: “The last six months have been marked in the industry with ongoing exploration into making digital humans more relatable and realistic through better understanding of human actions, enabling more intuitive editing of images and videos, and animating fictional characters in innovative ways. This includes efforts to replicate human body language, micro-gestures, facial expressions, and verbal communication, aiming for digital humans to be central in storytelling and creative processes.”...
You are not signed in
Only registered users can read the rest of this article.
Creator. Experience. Streaming: The new economies of broadcast AV
As brands, corporates, and creators claim their stake in the content landscape, the boundaries between broadcast and professional AV are dissolving. No longer just a convergence, the broadcast AV landscape is now shaped by new economies of creation, experience, and streaming.
AI and the media revolution: A look ahead to 2026
January has only just come to an end, but we are already looking ahead to the next IBC, which takes place as usual at the Amsterdam RAI in September. In the meantime, Content Everywhere companies are polishing their crystal balls and making predictions about what might lie ahead for the video and streaming industry during the next 12 months.
FutureTech 2026: “Align on innovation, and it accelerates”
From imaginative politics and shifting approaches to innovation to adaptable governance of technology, no topic was off the table at this year’s DTG’s FutureTech. George Jarrett reports.
Creator economy comes to enterprise: What does broadcast AV really mean today?
As video becomes a core enterprise capability, broadcast AV is being redefined. It’s less about better hardware and more about network-native, production-grade media systems that can scale, are interoperable and operate reliably inside modern IT environments.
Age diversity: What to do about an age-old problem?
In the era of the 100-year life, is it time for the M&E industry to revisit its relationship with age diversity? As mid-career challenges and skills shortages intensify, IBC365 investigates the professionals striving to give more, over longer periods of time.
.jpg)
