Ahead of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities last Sunday, Apple released a short film that showcased its Personal Voice accessibility feature, which debuted earlier this year in iOS 17. Personal Voice allows users to create digital versions of their voice to use on calls, supported apps and Apple's own Live Speech tool. For those who are at risk of permanently losing their voice due to conditions like Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, ALS and vocal cord paralysis, not sounding like yourself can be yet another form of identity loss. Being able to create a copy of your voice while you're still able might help alleviate the feeling that you'll never feel like yourself again, or that your loved ones won't know what you sound like. All iOS 17, iPadOS 17 and macOS Sonoma users can create a personal voice in case you need it in the future -- whether temporarily or for long-term use.

Arizona mother Jennifer DeStefano joins'America's Newsroom' to share her experience after being targeted by scammers who used artificial intelligence to clone her daughter's voice in an extortion plot. Voice cloning through artificial intelligence is quickly becoming more advanced, more accessible and more widely used. While using artificial intelligence to clone voices can be beneficial in making certain work more efficient and assisting those who have lost their ability to speak, there are also many problems that have, so far, been hard to solve. Anyone who has a phone, computer or similar technological device has access to voice cloning through a long list of available software. Even though some are more advanced and efficient than others, voice cloning as a whole is an extremely easy thing to do.

With Global Accessibility Awareness Day just days away, Apple is previewing a raft of new iOS features for cognitive accessibility, along with Live Speech, Personal Voice and more. The company said it worked in "deep collaboration" with community groups representing users with disabilities, and drew on "advances in hardware and software, including on-device machine learning" to make them work. The biggest update is "Assistive Access" designed to support users with cognitive disabilities. Essentially, it provides a custom, simplified experience for the phone, FaceTime, Messages, Camera, Photos, and Music apps. That includes a "distinct interface with high contrast buttons and large text labels" along with tools that can be customized by trusted supporters for each individual.