The Day of Talking with Dolphins Approaches... What Did They Want to Say to Humans?

Google DeepMind Team Developing AI Model
Programmed with Sound Patterns
Regional and Individual 'Dialects' Also Identified

The Google DeepMind research team is developing a model that can communicate with dolphins through artificial intelligence (AI). Reference photo to aid article understanding. Photo by Asia Economy DB

The Google DeepMind research team is developing a model that can communicate with dolphins through artificial intelligence (AI). This model aims not only to uncover the secrets of how animals communicate but also to eventually "speak like dolphins" in the future.

According to the British Daily Mail on the 15th (local time), Google DeepMind's "DolphinGemma" has been programmed with the world's largest collection of dolphin sounds, including clicks, whistles, and vocalizations recorded over several years from a wild dolphin project.

Deniz Hurzing, founder and research director of the Wild Dolphin Project, said, "We don't know if animals have words, but they can recognize themselves in mirrors and use tools. They are intelligent, but language remains the final barrier. By inputting dolphin sounds into an AI model, we can better detect patterns or subtle differences that humans cannot discern."

He added, "'Speaking like dolphins someday' will be the goal," and explained, "This model tries to find sequences that represent language by searching for sounds linked to behavior."

The Google DeepMind research team is developing a model that can communicate with dolphins through artificial intelligence (AI). Reference photo to aid article understanding. Photo by Asia Economy DB

Dr. Tas Starner of Google DeepMind said, "This model can help researchers discover the hidden structure and potential meanings within dolphins' natural communication," adding, "Previously, this work required enormous human effort. We are only just beginning to understand the patterns within the sounds."

Meanwhile, in 2022, it was confirmed that dolphins have regional dialects. While it was widely accepted that bottlenose dolphins have unique whistle sounds used to identify each other, new research shows that the acoustic characteristics of each dolphin's whistle are influenced by their regional habitat and pod.

It is already known that each dolphin group has distinct whistle sounds used like names, but the factors influencing these sounds have yet to be revealed.