New York City is using an AI-generated version of Mayor Eric Adams’s voice to reach residents by phone in multiple languages. The calls are meant to point people toward city job applications and community events, making the technology part of the city’s public outreach.
Using a familiar voice to reach residents
The robocalls use a clone of Adams’s voice created with Eleven Labs’ Voice Lab program. Their purpose, according to the source article, is practical: encourage residents to apply for city jobs and attend community events.
Delivering messages in multiple languages can help a city communicate with residents who speak different languages. In this case, AI voice cloning is the method New York City is using to make those calls. The source does not specify which languages are included or how many calls have been made.
Part of a wider city AI rollout
The voice calls are one piece of New York City’s recent adoption of AI tools. The city has also introduced a chatbot that can answer basic questions through its 311 hotline. Together, the examples show AI being used for two different kinds of resident contact: an automated phone message and a tool for responding to common inquiries.
The reported costs differ considerably. City officials put the voice-cloning effort at about $32,000, while developing the chatbot cost about $600,000. Those figures describe the price tags cited in the source; they do not explain what each project includes or how the costs may change over time.
Questions about trust and misinformation
The use of a cloned voice has drawn criticism from privacy advocates. Their concern is that AI technology could be used to spread misinformation. A recognizable voice may make a message feel official, so residents may need to consider not only what a call says but also how they can tell whether it is authentic.
The source describes the calls as city outreach, but it does not provide details about safeguards, disclosure language, or how recipients are told that the voice is AI-generated. Without those details, it is difficult to assess how the city handles transparency or what protections are in place against misuse.
What residents should take from the change
For residents, the immediate purpose of these calls is to share information about jobs and community events. The broader development is that AI voice cloning is being used in municipal communication, alongside a chatbot on the 311 hotline.
That approach may let the city deliver messages across languages, while also raising questions about privacy and public confidence. The source leaves open how the system works in practice, but the concerns point to a central issue for AI-powered public services: useful outreach depends on residents being able to trust the messages they receive.