Actor Scarlett Johansson has alleged that OpenAI copied her voice for ChatGPT’s ‘Sky’ system. Reacting to the allegations, the Sam Altman-led company has taken down the ChatGPT voice in question while also stating that Sky system’s voice is not an imitation of Johansson but belongs to a different professional actress.
In a statement on the matter, Johansson stated that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman had first approached her in September 2023 for being the voice of ChatGPT. However, the actor stated that despite her rejecting the offer, Altman went on to pursue a voice for ‘ChatGPT 4.0 system’ that sounded just like her and even made reference to the AI system from the movie ‘her’ where she had voiced the chat system.
“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 that my closest friends and news outlets could not tell the difference.” the actor stated.
OpenAI refutes Johansson’s allegations:
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman refuted the allegations by Avengers actor in a recent statement to news agency Reuters where he categorically stated that the ‘Sky’ voice of ChatGPT was not Scarlett Johansson’s and wasn’t intended to resemble her.
“The voice of Sky is not Scarlett Johansson’s, and it was never intended to resemble hers. We cast the voice actor behind Sky’s voice before any outreach to Ms. Johansson,” Altman stated.
“Out of respect for Ms. Johansson, we have paused using Sky’s voice in our products. We are sorry to Ms. Johansson that we didn’t communicate better.” the OpenAI CEO added.
Netizens react to Scarlett Johansson – OpenAI fiasco:
One user on X (formerly Twitter) while taking a shot at Sam Altman’s firing from OpenAI last year, stated, “Sam Altman cannot be trusted. No wonder why he was fired from OpenAI last Nov.”
Another user while hinting at the Johansson’s interaction with Disney last year, wrote, “She didn’t play with Disney, she’s not gonna play with open AI”
Yet another user while making a reference from the movie ‘Terminator’ stated, “They should change the name from Sky to Skynet. Helps build trust.”
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Published: 21 May 2024, 08:20 AM IST
