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In a bright recording room in Taipei, artificial intelligence is finding its voice — literally. Ethan Tu, founder of Taiwan AI Labs and the creator of Taiwan’s first AI singers, says the technology is not replacing musicians, but helping them preserve and extend the island’s musical identity.
“Music is one of the symbols of Taiwan,” Tu said. “AI helps preserve it.”
Tu, once a Microsoft researcher and the founder of PTT, Taiwan’s largest online forum, launched Taiwan AI Labs in 2017 as an open research institute focused on “trustworthy and responsible AI.” The lab has since moved from language processing to exploring how machines can create — and collaborate.
The AI singers project, developed in partnership with local artists in Hualien, features digital vocalists who perform alongside human musicians. “One is a gentleman, one is a lady, and together they represent Taiwan’s culture,” Tu said. “We encouraged 22 groups of singers to create their own songs, and then selected two to work with our AI singers and release an album together.”
The project relied on local volunteers donating their voices to train the system. “At the very beginning, we needed a lot of data that represented Taiwan,” Tu explained. “So we needed to convince a lot of people who have good voices to donate them.” To make it fair, the lab uses what Tu calls “federated learning” — a system where contributors can share in future revenue. “If this model becomes commercial, we will give you the revenue,” he said.
Inside the lab, even visitors can contribute to building the AI’s sonic library. “At the second floor, we actually have a recording room,” Tu said. “Once your voice is trained into an AI model, we can have a signed agreement. If people are interested in your voice, then you can sell it for a show.”
Tu says he uses AI constantly — from translation and research to generating summaries and producing news avatars. Yet he insists the human touch remains essential. “We will use AI every day, but AI will not replace humans because humans will be the boss of AI,” he said. “The creativity and investigative power of human beings will not be replaced.”
For Tu, responsible AI is not just a slogan but a safeguard. “Artificial intelligence needs to be verifiable, traceable, and auditable before you use it,” he said. He warned that convincing outputs from large language models can easily “deepfake a lot of stories,” turning misinformation into a serious threat.
Still, Tu believes Taiwan is in a unique position in the global AI race. “More than 90% of AI chips are manufactured in Taiwan by TSMC,” he said. “If we want to do AI research, Taiwan is a good place to start.”
Looking ahead, Tu’s team is working to empower Taiwan’s music industry to develop its own AI-driven creative tools. “In the future, the most representative human interaction will be songs created by humans and AI together,” he said. “Our next goal is to empower all the music companies in Taiwan to create their own AI music.”
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