AI revives the voices of gunshot victims

Today marks the sixth anniversary of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, at which 17 people were killed. 

This eerie campaign created by MullenLowe and produced by Edisen for Change the Ref and March for Our Lives recreates the voices of those killed in shootings, giving them agency to demand change in US gun laws. 

Last year more than 40,000 people lost their lives to gun voilence, with it being the leading cause of death for children in the US. And yet, politicians continue to throw up their ineffectual “thoughts and prayers” as a response. 

Now survivors, bereaved parents and advocates for gun safety have launched The Shotline - an automated platform using AI deep machine learning plus audio provided by victims’ families to recreate the voices of innocent victims of shootings, so they can tell the harrowing details of how they were killed. 

Each victim’s personal message will be repeatedly sent as a call directly to lawmakers, with the intention of forcing leaders to confront the toll of their inaction.

Lawmakers will receive detailed calls from victims including, Uziyah Garcia, a 10-year-old killed alongside 18 classmates and two teachers in the Uvalde school shooting at Robb Elementary School by a man with an AR-15, Ethan Song, a 15-year-old killed by a gun left unsecured at a friend’s house and Akilah Dasilva, a 23-year-old killed by a man with AR-15 in a Waffle House mass shooting.