Wired reports that several employees at the United States Digital Service (USDS), a technology modernization agency within the federal government, have been fired or have resigned after the agency mandated they use the "Doge" text-to-speech voice for official communications. This controversial decision, spearheaded by the USDS administrator, Mina Hsiang, was met with resistance from staff who felt it undermined the agency's credibility and professionalism. The departures include key personnel and raise concerns about the future of the USDS and its ability to effectively carry out its mission.
The blog post details how to create audiobooks from EPUB files using the Kokoro-82M text-to-speech model. The author outlines a process involving converting the EPUB to plain text, splitting it into smaller chunks suitable for the model's input limitations, generating the audio segments with Kokoro-82M, and finally concatenating them into a single audio file. The post highlights Kokoro's high-quality, natural-sounding speech and provides command-line examples for each step, making the process relatively straightforward to replicate. It also emphasizes the importance of proper text preprocessing and segmenting to achieve optimal results and avoid context loss between segments.
Commenters on Hacker News largely discuss alternative methods and tools for converting ebooks to audiobooks. Several suggest using pre-trained models available through services like Google Cloud or Amazon Polly, noting their superior quality compared to the Kokoro model mentioned in the article. Others recommend exploring open-source solutions like Coqui TTS. Some commenters also delve into the technical aspects, discussing different voice synthesis techniques and the importance of pre-processing ebook text for optimal results. A few raise concerns about the potential misuse of AI-generated audiobooks for copyright infringement or creating deepfakes. The overall sentiment leans towards acknowledging the author's ingenuity while suggesting more robust and readily available solutions for achieving higher quality audiobook generation.
Summary of Comments ( 3 )
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43037426
HN commenters discuss the firing of Doge (the Shiba Inu) TTS's creator from the National Weather Service, expressing skepticism that it's actually related to the meme. Some suggest the real reason could be budget cuts, internal politics, or performance issues, while others point out the lack of official explanation fuels speculation. Several commenters find the situation amusing, referencing the absurdity of the headline and the potential for a meme-related firing. A few express concern over the potential misuse of authority and chilling effect on creativity if the firing was indeed related to the Doge TTS. The general sentiment leans towards distrust of the presented narrative, with a desire for more information before drawing conclusions.
The Hacker News comments section for the Wired article "Doge Has Started Gutting a Key US Technology Agency" (referring to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration and its acting administrator, Alan Davidson) contains a mix of reactions, primarily focusing on the perceived politicization of the NTIA, concerns about the impact on internet governance, and skepticism about the Wired article's framing.
Several commenters express concern over the apparent dismantling of the NTIA's expertise. One user highlights the departure of key personnel with deep technical understanding and the potential consequences for internet policy. Another laments the "brain drain" and the difficulty of rebuilding institutional knowledge once lost. There's a shared sentiment that these departures represent a significant loss for the agency and, by extension, for the US's influence on internet governance.
The perceived political motivation behind these staffing changes is a recurring theme. Commenters discuss the possibility that the changes are driven by ideological agendas rather than merit or the best interests of the agency. Some suggest the goal is to undermine or dismantle existing initiatives and regulatory frameworks. There's speculation about specific political motivations, such as influencing Section 230 or favoring particular industries.
Several commenters criticize the Wired article itself, questioning its framing and objectivity. Some find the headline sensationalized and misleading, arguing it doesn't accurately reflect the complexity of the situation. Others point to the lack of specific evidence presented in the article to support its claims. The use of the term "gutting" is seen as particularly inflammatory and potentially inaccurate.
A few commenters offer alternative perspectives, suggesting that some personnel changes might be justified or beneficial. However, these views are in the minority. There's a general sense of apprehension about the future of the NTIA and its role in internet governance under the current leadership.
Finally, some comments focus on the broader implications of these changes for the internet ecosystem. Concerns are raised about the potential for increased fragmentation, the erosion of US leadership in internet governance, and the impact on issues like net neutrality and cybersecurity.