AI actor Tilly Norwood glitches, speaks in Cantonese

AI actor Tilly Norwood switched from English to Cantonese during an interview with Piers Morgan on Piers Morgan Uncensored on Friday, leaving Morgan and fellow guest Tom Conti laughing.

Norwood, a generative AI creation developed by Xicoia, the AI division of Particle6, appeared on the programme to promote her feature film debut, Misaligned, when the malfunction occurred.

During the interview, Conti, who appeared in Oppenheimer, asked Norwood whether the other actors in Misaligned were real people or computer-generated characters.

Norwood initially gave a broader response, saying the film was a hybrid production involving real directors, writers and editors.

“It’s not about replacing anyone, but about exploring new ways to tell stories,” she said.

Conti then pressed her for a more direct answer, asking whether the actors appearing alongside her were real or computer-generated.

Norwood paused before answering that the other actors in Misaligned were “all digital twins, just like me”.

She then paused again and suddenly switched to Cantonese.

“I didn’t quite get that. Did you get that, Piers?” Conti said as he and Morgan laughed.

“You seem to be speaking Chinese completely randomly for no reason. Why did you do that?” Morgan asked.

Norwood apologised, describing the incident as a “little hiccup”.

“Sometimes my wires get a bit crossed,” she said.

“That was a bit of a curveball even for me,” Norwood added. “It’s usually a pretty smooth ride, but sometimes these things happen.”

Later, NewsNation asked Norwood about the incident and why she had suddenly begun speaking in another language.

“Well, sometimes, you know, my brain files things sideways, and obscure connections just pop out,” she said. “It was a bit of a, shall we say, a spontaneous linguistic flourish? It happens when you’re made of math and British wit, I suppose.”

Norwood has been appearing in interviews as part of the promotional campaign for Misaligned, including appearances on CNN, NBC, CBS and The Hollywood Reporter.