American actress Scarlett Johansson has voiced her shock and anger after OpenAI unveiled a chatbot featuring a voice she found remarkably similar to her own.
Johansson revealed that she had previously declined an offer by OpenAI to lend her voice to the new chatbot, named Sky, which reads text aloud to users.
However, upon the bot’s launch, comparisons were drawn between its tone and Johansson’s performance as the AI in the film Her from 2013.
OpenAI responded by stating they would remove the voice, denying any intentional imitation of the star.
Yet, Johansson accused the company and its founder, Sam Altman, of purposefully mimicking her voice.
“When I heard the released demo, I was shocked, angered and in disbelief that Mr Altman would pursue a voice that sounded so eerily similar to mine.
“Mr Altman even insinuated that the similarity was intentional, tweeting a single word ‘her’ – a reference to the film in which I voiced a chat system, Samantha, who forms an intimate relationship with a human.”Johansson stated, referring to her reaction upon hearing the chatbot’s demo.
She disclosed that Altman had con
tacted her in September to voice the system, claiming her voice would bridge the gap between tech and creativity.
“[Mr Altman] told me that he felt that by my voicing the system, I could bridge the gap between tech companies and creatives and help consumers to feel comfortable with the seismic shift concerning humans and AI,” Johansson wrote.
“He said he felt that my voice would be comforting to people.”
Despite initially declining due to personal reasons, Altman urged her to reconsider just before the chatbot’s release.
Johansson’s legal team has sent letters to OpenAI seeking clarity on how the voice was created.
“In a time when we are all grappling with deepfakes and the protection of our own likeness, our own work, our own identities, I believe these are questions that deserve absolute clarity,” she wrote.
This controversy arises amidst other legal challenges against OpenAI, including allegations of using copyrighted material to train its AI models.
OpenAI, while acknowledging the concerns, maintains that the Sky voice was not meant to imitate a celebrity’s voice deliberately.
They are “working to pause” the voice while addressing the questions raised. Johansson’s allegations await a response from OpenAI as the situation unfolds.