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Connect the World
Rain Could Dampen Excitement of Olympics Opening Ceremony in Paris; Obama: Michelle and I "Couldn't be Prouder" to Endorse Harris; Two Trains Carrying Olympic Athletes Affected by Attack; Final Preparation Underway for Opening Ceremony; U.S. Lawmaker Makes History by Using A.I. to Speak. Aired 9-9:45a ET
Aired July 26, 2024 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[09:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: This is the scene in France at 03:00 p.m. now just hours away, of course from the opening ceremony for the Summer Olympic
Games. But an arson attack on the French train lines as they travel in that country into chaos. I'm Erica Hill joining you today from New York. This is
"Connect the World".
Also happening over the next two hours top Democrats unifying behind Vice President Kamala Harris as the Obama's formally endorsed the presumptive
Democratic Nominee. And Benjamin Netanyahu is in Florida, the Israeli Prime Minister set to meet with the Former U.S. President and Republican Nominee
Donald Trump.
And the stock market set to open in just about 30 minutes from now. I think we may have those futures we can show you. I am not able to see them on my
screen but I know we're putting them up for you there as you are watching so you can get a quick look. Of course, I will continue to follow that the
markets opening here in just about 30 minutes.
In Paris Olympic organizers say the opening ceremony will go ahead as planned that's despite the attack on the French train system and the
possibility of rain. French officials say the country's high speed train lines were targeted by multiple malicious acts including arson in what has
been described as a coordinated sabotage to disrupt travel ahead of the opening ceremony.
A number of trains were diverted or cancelled impacting as many as 800,000 travelers. Authorities say they don't yet know who's responsible for the
attacks. It is of course, though impossible to ignore the timing here just hours before the opening ceremony in Paris.
More than 320,000 spectators are expected to attend along the River Seine CNN's Melissa Bell and Coy Wire joining me now from Paris. So, Melissa
first of all in terms of this attack, what more do we know about this -- about it at this hour?
MELISSA BELL, CNN PARIS CORRESPONDENT: What we know Erica is that this was carried out in the early hours the morning around 04:00 a.m. and that it
was highly coordinated. And no doubt carried out by people who had fairly good knowledge of France's railway networks.
When you look at the country, nationwide, you're looking at cables being cut, signaling stations being set on fire, there were arson attacks. And
all of these attacks happen in extremely coordinated way at the same time, and were designed apparently to cause maximum chaos, really crippling a
large part of France's high speed rail network.
Now, we don't know who's responsible. No one has claimed responsibility for the time being. Clearly, the timing just hours before the opening ceremony
unlikely to be a coincidence. The consequences Erica said not just there's many tens of thousands of people who had been planning to make it into
Paris by train in time for the opening ceremony will now find that impossible.
But also, that the many hundreds of thousands and perhaps millions of French people who had been setting off on their annual summer holidays this
Friday with their children in -- France's rail network are being told that they won't be able to travel till Monday.
So, we wait to hear from who is responsible. But it does seem that it was a planned sabotage attack. And that's certainly what has been described as by
French authorities designed to cause maximum travel chaos, just hours before the official start of the Paris 2024 Games Erica.
HILL: Certainly, successful in causing that massive chaos, obviously impacting the Eurostar as well coming from the UK. All of this is happening
right there was already so much attention on Paris, not just for the games, but of course for today's opening ceremony. A lot of focus there on the
weather as well. Rain now in the mix. Has anything changed security wise for the opening ceremony? And what is that weather impact?
BELL: Well, you can see it started to rain quite heavily Erica. And this has been one of their big fears that this is an opening ceremony that will
be unlike any other six kilometers of the Seine River. And what we heard from the Mayor of Paris herself yesterday was that rain would have a huge
impact on it, not only because it would dampen the spirits and no doubt lessen the crowds amongst the 320,000 people that are expected to be there
in person.
The largest crowd in history ever, by the way to attend an opening ceremony in person. No doubt those crowds would be slightly lessen than but it will
also have an impact on the ceremony itself since it isn't just the athletes that are going to be descending the sand on the boats. There are going to
be dancers on rooftops. There are all sorts of things planned along that six-kilometer stretch that simply wouldn't be possible if this rain
continues Erica.
HILL: Fingers crossed the rain lets up that's about all we can do I guess at this point.
[09:05:00]
Coy when we look at this, I mean this is it is still the Olympic Games and these athletes who have trained for years there almost their entire lives,
many of them waiting for this moment. Melissa laying out a little bit of that opening ceremony. What we can -- what more can we expect tonight and
how's the athletes feeling? I know you've been checking in with them.
COY WIRE, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yeah, I've been talking to several Olympians and the excitement is really building just hours away the opening ceremony of
the Olympic Games Erica, you touched on. It's the pinnacle of their career for most of the athletes who will be competing, many of them will never
make it back.
They sacrifice their jobs, their family life for this one shot to make it all worth it. Now there are some superstar pros chasing Olympic gold too,
like Warriors Sharpshooter at Steph Curry. This will be his first Olympic Games. I asked Steph Curry and Sunstar Kevin Durant what they're going to
be thinking about as they're floating down that Seine River for the opening ceremony?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEPH CURRY, TEAM USA: You imagine the excitement of representing your country being a part of the opening ceremony festivities. I know it's very
unique here. Being on the River and being a part of -- you know just the scene in Paris. So, I'm excited about it all.
KEVIN DURANT, TEAM USA: And get to see all the great athletes around the world represent their country. And the pride that you have for your country
just goes to another level. We haven't done a river boat on a river yet -- you know we usually walk around the stadium, so it'd be a new experience
for me. I'm looking forward to it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WIRE: There are a record 139 current and former NBA and WNBA players competing in these games in just a few hours Erica, they will be floating
down that river with some of the 10,000 athletes from all around the world as the games officially kick off here in Paris.
HILL: Which will be so great? Any concerns among the athletes that you spoke to about security in light of what happened today? But also leading
into these games, because we have heard for months now that there is a heightened security heightened terror threat that officials are watching
very closely.
WIRE: Yes. We have sat at press conferences the past two, three days straight now talking with athletes from all different sports. And they've
been asked about their concerns, especially around security, specifically about the opening ceremony tonight floating down that river. Have they been
briefed? Have they been prepped for anything?
And they all said no, we haven't. And Steph Curry said I'm keeping it positive. I'm not thinking about any security threats. I'm not thinking
about falling in the water accidentally taken a swim in this Seine River. So, these athletes know as for now they are locked in. They're completely
focused. They say we feel completely safe in their Olympic village here as they're set to kick off their Olympic campaign here in Paris.
HILL: All right, sounds good. Coy Wire and Melissa Bell appreciate it. Thank you both. Well, the President of the International Olympic Committee
Thomas Bach says he has full confidence French officials are properly managing the situation following these attacks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THOMAS BACH, PRESIDENT, INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE: Oh, I don't have concern. We have full -- we have full confidence in the French authorities
all the measures are being taken. And the French authorities are assisted by 180 other intelligence services around the world. And not only by
information some of them are even deploying their human resources and so we have good reasons to have full confidence.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: He is feeling confidence and folks in Paris though, with a little different take. Take a listen to one Parisian explaining what she sees as a
fundamental issue here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, there are problems. I'm afraid things will get worse not just for tonight for the coming three weeks every day. We have to
secure all the sporting venues. We have to have more security than this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: French officials have long estimated the terror threat around the games will remain at a very high level the highest level. And Paris has
been boosting security in the weeks leading up to the Olympic Games for Friday's opening ceremonies and 45,000 police officers will be on duty
10,000 soldiers also being deployed for security at the games.
CNN Senior National Security Analyst Juliette Kayyem is also in Paris at this hour. And Juliette, I found it interesting, that Parisian woman saying
-- you know she's sort of anticipating what's going to happen over the coming days and weeks as the games are there. I would imagine that's a
major focus as well. This is clearly not just going to be one event there is concern that it could continue.
JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Yeah, that's exactly right. Look, the threat environment is going to remain the same throughout
that heightened terror environment that has been ongoing in Paris for several months now. But all the focus admittedly has been on this
spectacular opening ceremony.
[09:10:00]
And it's a spectacular means also, it is complicated security wise. I mean, you're going to have exposed athletes and entertainers on the river. So,
the experience of spectators is going to be quite sort of draconian in the sense of how you get in where you're able to sit. There is -- there are
snipers on every building.
I'm looking at the Arc de Triomphe right now I see a bunch of snipers up there. This is nothing but -- you know this is nothing short of a city
preparing for the potential of a major incident. And then, of course, outside of Paris, we have this transportation disruption. So, everyone's
looking at the opening ceremonies. We've got two weeks after that, and then -- and then things outside of Paris could go wrong.
HILL: How much of a concern is there amongst security officials that this attack is maybe a distraction of some sort?
KAYYEM: Yeah. So that mean, that would be -- that was my initial concern. And I have been talking to people here about -- you know, you're going to -
- you're going to get people you're going to get law enforcement to leave Paris for this investigation. And then now you have an expose event, which
is the opening ceremonies.
The French have said, and certainly the International Olympic Committee have said that there's going to be no changes in the security footprint
here. I tell you -- I've been to a lot of Olympics; I have never seen a security apparatus like this before. The city is basically empty as people
head towards the Seine.
So, it is -- it's a distraction. It's -- if it's a domestic political issue, which you're starting to hear, that's where the authorities are
beginning to lean. It's a huge vulnerability that was not close by the French authorities. They knew that there were domestic threats for various
political causes.
And it's -- you know it's hard to close the transportation system, but it's going to be very disruptive, and particular to athletes. That's the one --
that's the one group that you care the most about. The spectators can figure it out. You want the athletes to get there on time.
HILL: Yeah. And the IOC said it really is focused on the athletes. I found it interesting -- you know our colleague, Andy McCabe, just a short time
ago saying on CNN, when he looks at this, it's an attack that was clearly designed to bring the system down, right? The high-speed rail system down,
but not to inflict mass casualties. What's the takeaway from that?
KAYYEM: That's exactly right. So that is, I mean, that is why you're going to look at political entities that wanted to disrupt either make a
statement either about the Olympics or some other cause, that the whole world is now watching.
I took some comfort and not in the way that one has to take comfort in these kinds of incidents that it was not in the middle of the day. It is --
it is meant to inconvenience to the greatest number of people possible and it is. It is -- it is not just closing down access to Paris, basically the
Euro Rail between London and Paris is now having limited transportation lines between the two.
And when you think about how people might come to Paris it would often be through the Euro Rail. So, this is people's expectations of whether they
can arrive here will be disrupted.
HILL: Yeah, absolutely. Juliette, always appreciate your insight. Thank you.
KAYYEM: Thank you.
HILL: And a programming note here for our viewers on CNN International and streaming here on Macs, be sure to tune in to our special program ahead
today "Aiming for Gold" it airs at 07:00 p.m. Paris time 01:00 p.m. here in New York. CNN's Amanda Davies, Melissa Bell and Coy Wire will be there to
share the excitement of the opening ceremony.
Back here in the U.S., U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris adding a very high-profile endorsement to her presidential bid. Former President Barack
Obama and Former First Lady Michelle Obama calling Harris to tell her personally of their endorsement and also expressing their pride in her
candidacy.
CNN Senior White House Correspondent Kayla Tausche is with me now. So, Kayla, this endorsement there have been some question about when and if the
Obamas were in fact, going to endorse the vice president? This is really I think in a week that has moved very quickly, are also sending things a bit
into overdrive with the news of that endorsement.
KAYLA TAUSCHE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: The week has moved very quickly, Erica, but it has also had some very careful choreography
including this high-profile endorsement that adds quite a bit of momentum to an already fast-moving campaign by Vice President Harris.
Arguably one of the most influential couples in democratic politics, not only saying that they will endorse Vice President Harris but also that they
will campaign for her on the stump, as we near the election saying that they want to see her in the Oval Office and they will do what they can to
make that happen.
Now this comes on the back of a fast and furious week for Vice President Harris where her campaign says she raised $126 million in justice first two
days. We haven't gotten an update since Tuesday.
[09:15:00]
And also, has been holding thousands of events with surrogates nationwide and organizing specific demographics virtually to try to recruit more, more
of a ground game around the country to supplement the already large infrastructure that the Biden campaign had passed on to her.
The Harris campaign, rather, is planning a weekend of action with potlucks and various pride events over the weekend. And they're also planning today,
several events with surrogates in key battleground states. And then there is the official role of the vice president Erica.
Yesterday she stepped into the foreign policy spotlight following a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as war between Israel and
Hamas continues to simmer despite a ceasefire deal on the table there.
She made some remarks to camera distilling her position now as a candidate on Israel saying that Israel has a right to defend itself and how it does
so matters. She's continuing to evolve as a candidate continuing to enlist more support and that Obama endorsement is, of course, just the latest and
highest profile Erica.
HILL: Yeah. And such an important point you made about the choreography that we've seen in this quick -- in this quick moving week, right? That
meeting, of course, and even her comments afterwards with the Israeli Prime Minister in many ways, part of that. But even this endorsement from the
Obamas I think we have some video we can show of that moment. I just going to play it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE U.S., (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Hey there. Ah, you're both together. Oh, it's good to hear you both.
MICHELLE OBAMA, FORMER FIRST LADY: I can't have this phone call without saying to my girl Kamala, I am proud of you. This is going to be historic.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: That not surprisingly, obviously choreographed right to have the call ready to make sure that it's on camera to make sure that it is on
speakerphone to make sure that we can hear the Former First Lady, all of that really part of this rollout.
TAUSCHE: And to be rolled out on a standalone basis Erica. I mean, there were many endorsements that came out in quick succession nearly immediately
after President Biden announced that he was going to be endorsing his vice president to take his place atop the ticket and essentially handing over
all of his infrastructure to her.
You saw House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, shortly after that, and then you saw the two top Democrats currently in Congress, House Minority Leader Hakeem
Jeffries, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Tuesday publicly endorsing her as well.
And so there have been these endorsements that have been rolled out in succession so that they each get their moment, and so that voters and the
party writ large can have many more touchstones as they seek to unify themselves after the four weeks that have been complete chaos for the prior
iteration of the campaign.
HILL: Kayla Tausche live at the White House at this hour. Thank you. Well, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu making his way to Florida today
where he will meet with the Republican Nominee of course Former President Donald Trump.
In those separate meetings on Thursday in Washington with both President Biden and Vice President Harris, they pushed the prime minister to finalize
a ceasefire deal with Hamas. Harris taking a decidedly more forceful direct tone in comments after their meeting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: As I just told Prime Minister Netanyahu, it is time to get this deal done. So, to everyone who has been calling for a ceasefire, and to
everyone who yearns for peace. I see you and I hear you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Those comments prompting criticism from far-right Israeli Ministers and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir writing on X, the war won't
be ceased, Madam Candidate. Joining me now Alayna Treene, who is of course covering the Trump campaign. So, Alayna, when we look at this, it's
interesting that reaction we saw, especially in light of the fact that Donald Trump himself is also urging the prime minister to end this war.
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. And Donald Trump has repeatedly said he thinks this war needs to end swiftly. He's actually been
more critical of Prime Minister -- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying he has a public relations problem. He's criticized the way that he has
handled this even from the outset, immediately after the attack on October 7th, Donald Trump was very critical of how Israel handled this.
So, I would keep that in mind. But look, Donald Trump doesn't have as much of an overarching goal or set agenda for this meeting today with Netanyahu.
When I talk to Donald Trump's advisers, they said it's really open ended and they expect that the meeting will go wherever the two leaders take it.
But there are a couple important things I want to point out here. One is which this will be the first time that Trump and Netanyahu meet since Trump
departed the White House more than three years ago. And remember, Donald Trump had a very close personal relationship with the Israeli Prime
Minister.
[09:20:00]
When he was in office, he often touts even to this day and repeatedly on the campaign trail that he is the most -- he was the most, I should say,
pro-Israel president in modern history. However, their relationship has really soured in recent years. Part of that is because Donald Trump thought
he was disloyal.
When Netanyahu congratulated Joe Biden and said he looked forward to working with him after the 2020 election. And in an interview with Axios,
Trump had actually said, eff him regarding Netanyahu. But there are also some questions about whether or not Trump has said that he felt betrayed by
Netanyahu when Israel at the 11th hour pulled out of a strike to kill Qasem Soleimani, so, a lot of moving parts on that end.
Now, the other side of this as well, though, is that a lot of Israelis, and this is according to my colleague, Kylie Atwood, who worked on this story
with me, a lot of Israeli officials believe that Trump could give Netanyahu a longer leash. And so, we really have seen Netanyahu, you know, try to
reach out and repair relationships with Donald Trump.
I do want to read for you when one senior adviser told me when I asked them about the timing on this meeting, and it coming despite, you know, some of
the tensions between the two leaders, this is what they told me. They said, quote, Trump is willing to put any personal or political differences to the
side and develop or reconnect with him, to develop a working relationship with him.
It shows the evolution of how Trump will conduct himself in a second term. Now, another important part of this, Erica, that I think, you know, we
should all take note of, is just how many worlds leaders Donald Trump has been meeting with over the course of the last month.
He just a couple of weeks ago, he met with Viktor Orban, he hosted him at Mar-a-Lago as well, the Hungarian Prime Minister. He's also met with the
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron, he's spoken on the phone, including in a conversation with the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin
Salman.
So, you know that's just a couple examples of what I'm saying. And I think it's fascinating because we are really seeing a lot of these world leaders
coming to his doorstep, and really hedging their bets. And I think this meeting with Netanyahu was a great example of that he was just in
Washington meeting with President Biden as well as Vice President Kamala Harris, who could very well be the Democratic presidential nominee.
But he's also meeting with Donald Trump and this is a sense of they want to make sure that they have strong relationships with all of these leaders,
depending on what happens in November, Erica.
HILL: Alayna Treene, appreciate the reporting as always, thank you. Just ahead here, the largest wildfire of the year in California is now exploding
in size, it is an uphill battle to slow those flames, and we have a live report, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: And update for you on our top story at this hour the disruptions to rail service in France due to what's being called a coordinated sabotage.
[09:25:00]
Authorities now see two trains carrying the Olympic app fleets were impacted by the disruptions. French officials still say at this hour they
do not know yet who is responsible for the attack. We'll continue to follow those developments for you out of Paris. We are also closely monitoring the
situation in Northern California where firefighters have bridling what is the state's largest fire this year.
The blaze has now grown to almost 650 square kilometers. That's half the size of the City of Los Angeles. And it is just 3 percent contained high
winds and extreme temperatures fueling that fast-growing blaze. CNN's Camila Bernal is near the park fire in Chico, California. And a man was
actually arrested overnight for allegedly starting this massive place.
CAMILA BERNAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Erica, so unfortunate, but authorities are saying that it was a 42-year-old man who was at a park
nearby and pushed this car about 60 feet. There were people there who saw him in authority say they witnessed him even leaving the area. And all of
that created what you're seeing here behind me.
All of this area has already been torched by this fire and we're seeing it firsthand just how quickly this fire spreads because you see how the
vegetation looks at the moment it is dry the grass in this area, it's extremely dry and so you add the triple digit temperatures that we're
expecting later on today.
You add in some of the wind and you get these fast-moving flames. You see the embers; you see how thick the smoke is we are in a safe area there are
firefighters here that we spoke to. They have been working around the clock and they're right now you hear the chainsaws because they are clearing some
of the area where we are now to try to avoid those flames from getting into some small structures here.
But again, the concern is just how quickly it's spreading. It's an average of about 50 football fields per minute. So, authorities just telling people
to be extremely careful this is an area that was already impacted by the deadliest wildfire here in California history. So, it is traumatic for a
lot of the people here in Chico, California, Erica.
HILL: Yeah, understandably appreciate -- thank you. Just ahead here on "Connect the World", a key gauge of U.S. inflation just released. What that
gauge now shows and how it could impact the Feds thinking on interest rates, that's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:30:00]
HILL: The opening bell there on "Wall Street", trading officially kicking off for the day in New York. I'm Erica Hill here in New York as well.
You're watching "Connect the World". The markets at this hour reacting to a key inflation report, which was just released within the last hour.
The personal consumption expenditures Price Index, as you can see there, up 2.5 percent in June, that's on an annualized basis. It's a slowdown from
2.6 percent, the month before falling prices for energy and some goods continuing to put a damper on inflation, which is of course, good news.
And these new numbers increase the likelihood the Federal Reserve could follow through on its planned September interest rate cut. So, we'll be
watching for that and also watching to see how the markets continue to react throughout the day. When it comes to the Olympic Games in Paris,
security just one issue facing France today as the games officially kick off with the opening ceremony and just a couple of hours now in Paris.
The weather not exactly co-operating either for this very ambitious outdoor opening ceremony that will make its way of course down the Seine, Derek Van
Dam is in the world Weather Center for us. So, what are the chances will it be dry for this major event?
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yeah, that's the update that we have. The forecast has changed and Erica, with so much relying on dry weather for
these opening ceremonies, meteorologists and weather forecasters are looking at this very closely minute by minute. In fact, I was on the ground
in Paris.
A couple of weeks ago, we talked exclusively to some of the meteorologists, the weather forecasters from medial France. They're the agency in France
that is responsible for advising the International Olympic Committee on potential weather hazards that could impact any of the events including the
ceremony tonight, as well as the individual events over the next couple of weeks.
He showed me some of the tools that they will be using behind the scenes, including the radar that you're seeing on your television screen now. That
is mobile weather radar. It depicts rainfall at street level, a very small resolution, and it will give minute by minute updates of when the rain will
come.
Remember as they traveled down the river Seine today, a six kilometer stretch the outdoor stadium for the opening ceremony this normally is held
indoors. Well, the weather it plays a crucial role, including the flow of the Seine, as well as the performance spaces that if it's wet, it could be
quite dangerous for these performers as they open the ceremonies this evening.
So, we got that behind the scenes look at this technology, which is astounding. They've covered all the bases. But of course, now it's just up
to Mother Nature to play along. So, what does the weather forecast look for, look alike this evening? Well, we've already seen rain in Paris this
morning.
That doesn't bode well with anyone dealing with the sabotage with the trains in Paris, if they're lining up or queuing up outside of the train
stations. But as we look a little bit broader, there's a lot of moisture coming in off of the Atlantic Ocean. So, this cloud cover is going to
result in rainfall when what we believe will coincide with the start of the opening ceremonies tonight.
So, not the best news for this forecast for this evening, because again, the opening ceremony is so heavily weather dependent, something that
meteorologists are just going to be focusing on their tools that minute-by- minute mobile radar updates, and they will make last second decisions on whether or not certain parts of the event can move forward because of the
weather, Erica.
HILL: I guess the upside is when we see that radar at least it's not a dark red or purple, which would show that it was severe rain right so --
DAM: I saw lows.
HILL: Yeah.
DAM: They mentioned moderate rainfall.
HILL: Moderate.
DAM: They could get 15 millimeters over the next couple of hours. That's a half an inch of rain. That's not a light drizzle. And that's not
necessarily comfortable for all those athletes and spectators today.
HILL: Tough to test to jobs to jobs. I'm trying to stay positive here, Derek --
DAM: -- I like it.
HILL: Work with me my friend. Thank you, appreciate it as always.
DAM: All right.
HILL: A route truly remarkable historic moment in the U.S. Congress on Thursday. Democratic Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton became the first person
to use an AI model of her voice to speak on the House floor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. JENNIFER WEXTON (D-VA): I used to be one of those people who hated the sound of my voice. When my ads came on TV, I would cringe and change the
channel, but you truly don't know what you've got till it's gone, because hearing the new AI of my old voice for the first time was music to my ears.
It was the most beautiful thing I had ever heard and I cried tears of joy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Wexton has been battling a degenerative brain condition that affects her ability to speak. But she sounded more like, herself again, as you just
heard in that clip there. Here's CNN's Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta to explain how this works. He spoke with my colleague Sara
Sidner short time ago.
[09:35:00]
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Really is incredible. You know, we talk about AI a lot. And there's lots of cautionary tales out
there. But this is an example of how it can provide some real benefit. So, what she did was she teamed up with this company called 11 labs. And what
they first did was they basically just took lots of old clips of her speeches, and started to feed these into the AI platform, trying to like
break it down into these specific units of speech.
And they were trying to basically get her from the point where you'd have more of a robotic sounding voice, to something that's going to sound much
more like her natural voice. So, listen, first of all, to what it was like before, when to just using sort of standard software.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WEXTON: It may shock you to hear this, but this is not my real voice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GUPTA: All right, so that's what it was. And that's been an existing technology for some time. But now you have the AI platform, you've fed in
all this material, you're trying to break down the units of speech, and listen to what her real voice sounds like then followed immediately by the
AI platform voice.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WEXTON: And can you assure this committee that you will not make any that - - does not have any current or future plans to eliminate the equal access rule during the -- in rulemaking? Today, an entire generation has never
known life without the protections that exist, because of the ADA.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GUPTA: It's pretty impressive, Sara, I mean, you know, I'm playing those all back-to-back so you can really get a sense of it. But when they take
these previous speeches, what they're really doing is breaking it down into specific units of speech known as phonemes, that even when you hear a
speech, it's actually these individual units.
And they're made up of very, very sort of specific things to the way a person speaks, the way that you speak versus the way that I speak, you can
actually sort of start to create a formula for that. And it's a unique accent. It's the intonation. It's the rhythm of someone's voice to get that
right. It's challenging, but that's what these AI platforms can do.
HILL: Pretty incredible stuff. Stay with us. "Connect the World" will be right back.
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HILL: So called fast fashion which true to its name is produced quickly and important note inexpensively has skyrocketed over the last two decades
while it may not cost a lot in the store. It comes at a huge cost to the environment. In New York one fashion designer is paving the way for a more
sustainable future. Here's Lynda Kinkade with that story.
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GABRIELA HEARST, FOUNDER & CREATIVE DIRECTOR OF GABRIELA HEARST: I go to my childhood. My mother had a very small wardrobe. The idea of making clothes
was an art and something that takes time.
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And so really having few but special pieces is a part of the philosophy of what I believe in which is the opposite of fast fashion.
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Luxury sustainable fashion designer Gabriella Hearst grew up on an off-grid ranch in Uruguay. Though
she didn't go into a family's farming business, she took everything she learned and applied it to her eponymous label.
HEARST: On a ranch is a circularity, you don't throw anything away you have to see where you can put it right from you always find ways to repurpose
things and I really decided that Gabriella Hearst had to be better made, it had to be conscious about who is making it and the materials that we're
using.
KINKADE (voice-over): Founded in 2015, her brand champions, low impact and recycled textiles.
HEARST: And here you have a mix of wool, with a bit of cashmere make it look like its fur. I prefer wool. Wool is one of the most sustainable
fibers one can use. Wool can be needed in the finest of microns. And it's one of the materials that we've used through our human history.
So yes, exploring natural materials, repurposing of materials and then the second part is really who is making your product. One of the most-proud and
long-term collaboration has been with -- which is coop in my country we know that empowering women empower communities.
KINKADE (voice-over): Beyond the clean fabrics and ethical sourcing, the brand's packaging is also sustainable.
HEARST: We wanted to take all plastic out of our supply chain, and we did recycle hangers, made out of cardboard. Then the other we use is TIPA,
which is biodegradable packaging.
KINKADE (voice-over): And in 2019, she put on the world's first carbon neutral runway show.
HEARST: Just again, farming mentality of common sense, how can we reduce something?
KINKADE (voice-over): Hearst says she has the conviction to keep moving the needle in sustainable fashion. But she says it will take a collective
effort.
HEARST: There's a responsibility on the consumer but there's a responsibility on government in policy and I think there's a conscious
change that happening. So, I'm hopeful because of that.
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HILL: For more stories in this series, just log on to cnn.com/goinggreen. "World Sport" live from Paris is up next. I'll see you back here for more
news in just about 15 minutes.
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