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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Environment
Patrick Barkham

Talking to whales: can AI bridge the chasm between our consciousness and other animals?

An illustration of a whale with sound waves emanating from it, in blues, and a tiny ship, in red, dropping a speaker towards the whale
Big talk: we have known since the 60s that whales ‘sang’ to one another. What if we could now discover the meanings of what they say, and even ask them about it? Illustration: Eiko Ojala

Tom Mustill was kayaking with his friend Charlotte in Monterey Bay, California, when an animal three times the size of the largest Tyrannosaurus Rex hurtled from the water and crashed down on their tiny craft. As the flying humpback whale fell upon them and their kayak was sucked beneath the waves, Mustill assumed he would die. Miraculously he and Charlotte found themselves gasping for breath, clinging to their capsized kayak. How had they survived a smash with a creature three times the weight of a double-decker bus?

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