Can AI ever be funny? Some comedians embrace AI tools but they’re still running the show

A baby and his family dog sit across from each other in a podcast studio.

“Welcome to the talking baby podcast,” says the infant, wearing headphones and sounding like a deep-voiced radio broadcaster. “On today’s episode, we’ll be talking to the weird-looking person who lives at my house.”

So begins a series of humorous interactions between two characters animated by artificial intelligence that’s attracted millions of views on social media. They’re a nod to the 1989 movie “Look Who’s Talking” but produced in a matter of hours and without a multimillion-dollar Hollywood budget.

AI helped do all of that, but it didn’t craft the punch lines. It’s a relief to comedian Jon Lajoie, who made the videos, that AI chatbots just aren’t “inherently funny.”

“It can’t write comedy,” said Lajoie. “It can’t do any of that.”

For now, at least, they won’t take his job.

Lajoie’s viral videos have gained him attention