AI Audio in Taiwan’s Parliament

In the halls of Taiwan's Legislative Yuan, Dr. Chen Ching-Hui, a professional doctor and legislator, faced a critical challenge. Just hours before a crucial 30-minute questioning session with the Premier—she temporarily lost her voice due to vocal cord edema.

Rather than cancel the session, her assistant sought help from her colleague Dr. Ju Chun Ko, a fellow member of the KMT party.

Generating the audio was the easy part

Dr. Ko and the team turned to ElevenLabs' voice cloning technology, using past recordings of Dr. Chen speech to quickly create a voice clone that closely matched her natural speech.

The challenge wasn't just technological. Parliament rules dictate that for statements to be included in official logs, they must be spoken aloud by a representative. Recordings typically don't count.

In a remarkable bipartisan display, Dr. Ko and his team managed to secure approval from the president of parliament, the parliament government official, and the premier—all within the three hours leading up to Dr. Chen's scheduled session.

With the Taiwan (ROC) Legislative Yuan and its President/Speaker Han's approval, Dr. Chen Ching-Hui successfully conducted what is believed to be Taiwan's first parliamentary interpellation using AI voice cloning technology. The premier’s jaw dropped when he heard Dr. Chen Ching-Hui’s voice while her lips weren't moving.

The Future of AI in Taiwan and the Parliament 

This groundbreaking event has opened discussions about further applications of AI in parliamentary procedures. Currently, legislators must read out long bills line by line to ensure they enter the official transcript. Now, there's consideration of automating this tedious process.

Dr. Ko sees this as a prime example of human-AI collaboration, stating, "This demonstrates how technology can support and enhance our democratic processes, not replace them."

Energized by this success, Dr. Ko plans to teach his Youth League how to use ElevenLabs and other AI tools. "We're at the forefront of a new era in politics," he explained. "It's crucial that our young leaders understand and can leverage these technologies."