AI Trace
Creative GenerationConsumer FacingVerified

Reviewed and published by trentmaziarz, March 22, 2026. Discovered and drafted by our automated research pipeline.

Personal Voice is an accessibility feature introduced with iOS 17 in September 2023 that lets users create a synthetic voice that sounds like their own. It is designed primarily for people who are at risk of losing their ability to speak due to conditions like ALS. After recording 150 short phrases (roughly 15 minutes of audio), the device processes the recordings overnight using on-device machine learning and creates a voice clone the user can speak through in calls, FaceTime, and apps.

Details

The technical pipeline involves fine-tuning both a neural text-to-speech acoustic model and a vocoder model (software that generates the actual audio output) on the device overnight while charging. Apple's machine learning researchers published the technical details of this system, noting that on-device training — rather than cloud processing — is central to preserving privacy. The finished voice is encrypted and stored locally, only accessible via Face ID, Touch ID, or device passcode. Users can optionally sync their Personal Voice across devices via iCloud with end-to-end encryption. Third-party assistive communication apps can request access to Personal Voice with the user's permission.

Products affected

iPhone (iOS 17+)iPad (iPadOS 17+)Mac (macOS Sonoma+)

Sources & Evidence

Regulatory Filing

Regulatory FilingVerified
Advancing Speech Accessibility with Personal Voice
Apple Machine Learning Research·Dec 2023
https://machinelearning.apple.com/research/personal-voice

News Article

News Article
Apple’s next big iPhone update lets you create a digital voice that sounds like you
CNBC·May 2023
https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/16/apple-ios-17-update-to-intro-personal-voice-that-sounds-like-you.html

Company Disclosure

Company DisclosureVerified
Apple introduces new features for cognitive accessibility, along with Live Speech, Personal Voice, and Point and Speak in Magnifier
Apple Newsroom·May 2023
https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2023/05/apple-previews-live-speech-personal-voice-and-more-new-accessibility-features/

Cite this record

Trace Foundation. (2026). Apple: Personal Voice is an accessibility feature introduced with iOS 17 in September 2023 that lets users create a synthetic voice that sounds like their own. It is designed primarily for people who are at risk of losing their ability to speak due to conditions like ALS. After recording 150 short phrases (roughly 15 minutes of audio), the device processes the recordings overnight using on-device machine learning and creates a voice clone the user can speak through in calls, FaceTime, and apps (data as of 2026-09-02) [Data set record]. AI Trace. https://www.aitrace.org/r/practice/99a5a5eb-4a4c-48d9-9575-b48aa8febe98. Accessed October 13, 2026.

Stable link
https://www.aitrace.org/r/practice/99a5a5eb-4a4c-48d9-9575-b48aa8febe98
Data as of
September 2, 2026
Last verified
March 24, 2026

How to cite AI Trace

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