SK Telecom is a South Korean wireless telecommunications operator and former film distributor. It is part of the SK Group, one of the country's largest conglomerates.
In an innovative collaboration, DeepBrain AI and SK Telecom (SKT) joined forces to create an AI Twin for world-renowned professional golfer Choi Kyung-ju, also known as K.J. Choi. The AI Twin was deployed in the SKT Open 2023 event. The project, named 'AI Kyung-ju Choi', showcased the fusion of DeepBrain AI's virtual human technology with SKT's cutting-edge speech synthesis capabilities.
To create AI Kyung-ju Choi, DeepBrain AI and SK Telecom used existing photographs and interview videos of professional golfer Choi Kyung-ju. This helped them extract critical facial data for deep learning. They then meticulously trained the AI model to synchronize lip movements with speech using advanced video synthesis techniques.
The integration with SKT's Text-to-Speech (TTS) engine helped recreate Choi Kyung-ju's distinctive vocal nuances, resulting in a comprehensive AI representation. This method is much faster and more efficient than traditional methods of creating AI human avatars that require full-body filming and scripted speech.
The AI Twin, 'AI Kyung-ju Choi', made a spectacular debut during the four-day KPGA Korean Tour's 'SK Telecom Open 2023 event as a commentator. Audiences were amazed by the incredibly natural facial expressions and gestures of the virtual K.J. Choi, which synchronized naturally with the commentary on the golf tournament.
DeepBrain AI expanded the scope of training beyond the traditional 500-sentence threshold to ensure impeccable lip-syncing during commentary of the golf tournament. AI Kyung-ju Choi was trained on an array of golf-specific terminologies to seamlessly replicate natural and realistic lip movements across diverse on-course scenarios.
In the past, creating AI human models required individuals to be present in a dedicated studio for full-body filming and scripted speech. Earlier AI achievements by DeepBrain AI, such as 'AI Yoon Seok-yeol' and 'AI Kim Ju-ha', used this method which required public figures to carve out time from their demanding and busy schedules.
However, the successful creation of 'AI Kyung-ju Choi' marks a paradigm shift, demonstrating that it is now possible to create an AI human solely through video and audio resources.