Scientists are getting closer to realizing the dream of "talking" to animals using artificial intelligence, but this revolutionary idea raises serious concerns about the privacy of these creatures and the possibility of their exploitation.
Experts warn that technologies that decode animal communication may carry serious risks. While machine learning models pave the way for indexing and even simulating the sounds animals use to communicate, experts argue that there is a risk overlooked in research ethics: violating animal privacy by collecting data on their sounds and movements. This is particularly concerning given that many animals have complex social lives and a vested interest in controlling how they appear to others.
The ability to "talk" to animals may also pose risks to the natural world, particularly through "playback" technology, which is the practice of broadcasting recorded animal sounds from the wild.
Biologist Vittorio Baglioni, who has spent his career cataloging the calls of black crows, believes that artificial intelligence models have helped him sort through his recordings and identify patterns in certain calls, such as the "Come help!" call that crows use to summon others to defend their nest. However, he cautioned that this technology could be exploited by hunters or anyone with malicious intent to lure the birds, potentially causing stress to the animals, disrupting their social environment, or inciting conflict among them.
Cesar Rodriguez-Garavito, director of the More Than Human Life program at New York University, asserts that replay technology remains controversial because it exploits an animal's trust in a particular voice to force it to behave in the way the user wants.
In his 2025 report, he noted that this technology could expose animals to crowds of humans who want to talk to them or even arm them against them.
Previous research points to the risks, with zoologist Katie Payne admitting in 2007 that she caused great distress to an elephant when she played a recording of his deceased grandfather's voice.
Despite these concerns, a $10 million prize is still pending for a project that can establish contact with an animal without the animal realizing it is communicating with humans.
Billionaire Jeremy Kohler, who is funding the Kohler-Dolittle Challenge, believes that humans will achieve this goal within the current decade, considering that the speed of development of artificial intelligence gives him absolute certainty that they will break the code by 2030.
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