Dame Judi Dench and John Cena to voice Meta AI chatbot

Instagram owner Meta says Dame Judi Dench and John Cena will be voice options for its artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot.

Users will also be able to get information from AI versions of Awkwafina, Keegan Michael Key or Kristen Bell.

The technology giant’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, made the announcements during the company’s annual Connect conference.

At the event, Mr Zuckerberg also unveiled the first working prototype of Meta’s augmented-reality (AR) glasses, called Orion.

Speaking about the updates to Meta AI, Mr Zuckerberg said: “I think that voice is going to be a way more natural way of interacting with AI than text.”

Other new offerings for the ChatGPT-like chatbot include it being able to recognise things users photograph and giving them information about them.

An image editing feature will allow users to alter photos just by telling the Meta AI what changes they want.

The firm said that more than 400 million people were now using Meta AI a month, with 185 million of them returning to it every week.

Showing off the Orion glasses, Mr Zuckerberg said: “A lot of people have said this is the craziest technology they’ve ever seen.”

Users will be able to interact with Orion through hand-tracking, voice and wrist-based interface.

Meta also announced an entry-level version of its Quest line of mixed-reality headsets, with prices for the new Quest 3S starting at $300 (£225).

Some of the world’s biggest technology firms have been developing AR glasses but have not yet launched commercially successful mass market devices.

In recent years, Meta has pumped billions of dollars into developing AI, AR and other metaverse technologies.

The company expects to spend as much as $40bn on new projects this year, a record high.

Before the event, Meta’s shares ended Wednesday’s trading day at a record high of $568.31.

The company – which also owns social media platforms Facebook and WhatsApp – has seen its stock market value rise by more than 60% since the start of this year.