Melania Trump sparks backlash with AI-narrated memoir

By TASH MOSHEIM SHOWBUSINESS REPORTER

Published: 14:36 BST, 23 May 2025 | Updated: 14:41 BST, 23 May 2025

Melania Trump has released her memoir, Melania, as an AI-narrated audiobook – using a synthetic version of her own voice.

The £18 audiobook launched on 22 May and is currently available in English through the ElevenReader app and on her official website, MelaniaTrump.com

Versions in Spanish, Portuguese and Hindi are due later this year. The recording lasts seven hours.

‘I am honoured to bring you Melania – The AI Audiobook – narrated entirely using artificial intelligence in my own voice,’ she posted on X. ‘Let the future of publishing begin.’

In a formal statement, she added: ‘I am proud to be at the forefront of publishing’s new frontier – the intersection of artificial intelligence technology and audio. 

ElevenLabs developed an AI-generated replica of my voice under my strict supervision, which will establish an unforgettable connection with my personal story, in multiple languages for listeners worldwide.’

Melania Trump has released her memoir, Melania, as an AI-narrated audiobook. The £18 audiobook launched on 22 May and is currently available in English through the ElevenReader app and on her official website, MelaniaTrump.com 

Melania Trump published her memoir in October 2024

The memoir, published in October 2024, is described by publisher Skyhorse as ‘a compelling and inspirational’ account.

It traces Trump’s life from her childhood in Slovenia to her modelling career in Europe and New York, culminating in ‘the serendipitous meeting with Donald Trump, a chance encounter that forever changed the course of her life’.

The book also includes personal photographs and has been presented in a coffee table format.

But while the book promises inspiration, the decision to use artificial intelligence in place of a traditional reading has triggered widespread criticism.

‘Why wouldn’t you read it yourself? That’s disappointing,’ wrote one user on X.

Others were less diplomatic: ‘That ain’t publishing. That’s you talkin’ to Siri. Siddown,’ said one particularly sharp post.

Trump worked with ElevenLabs, a New York-based AI audio company backed by £208 million in funding and recently valued at £2.4 billion.

The company created an ‘official AI voice’ for the former First Lady, allowing her to release the audiobook without recording it herself.

ElevenReader, its app, features AI-narrated works from public figures including Maya Angelou, Deepak Chopra and Arianna Huffington, and even voices of deceased celebrities such as Judy Garland, Sir Laurence Olivier and John Wayne.

Some critics viewed the decision as a broader warning about automation in the arts: ‘Let’s stop replacing humans with AI. It’s a road to disaster.’

Trump’s embrace of AI in storytelling comes even as she warns of its dangers elsewhere.

Just days before the audiobook’s release, she appeared alongside Donald Trump at the signing of the Take It Down Act, aimed at strengthening protections for victims of deepfake pornography – an initiative she supported as part of her Be Best campaign.

‘Artificial intelligence and social media are the digital candy for the next generation: sweet, addictive, and engineered to have an impact on the cognitive development of our children,’ she said.

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Melania Trump sparks backlash with AI-narrated memoir

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