Scarlett Johansson forces OpenAI to remove voice 'similar' to hers from ChatGPT 4.0 chatbot 'Sky'

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: A few days before OpenAI unveiled its new, flirty voice assistant last week, Scarlett Johansson revealed that the company's CEO, Sam Altman, contacted her agent to request permission to use her voice for the virtual assistant, per Guardian. 

Even after a second request to the actress in the past year, the 'Lucy' star declined both times.

Despite those refusals, Johansson said OpenAI used a voice that sounded “eerily similar to mine.” She even hired a lawyer to demand that OpenAI stop using a voice it called 'Sky.'

What did Scarlett Johansson say in her statement? 

Johansson expressed her disapproval of the voice used by ChatGPT in a statement to NBC.

She said, "Last September, I received an offer from Sam Altman, who wanted to hire me to voice the current ChatGPT 4.0 system. He told me that he felt that by voicing the system, I could bridge the gap between tech companies and creatives and help consumers feel comfortable with the seismic shift concerning humans and Al. He said he felt that my voice would be comforting to people." 

The actress added, "After much consideration and for personal reasons, I declined the offer." 

"Nine months later, my friends, family and the general public all noted how much the newest system named 'Sky' sounded like me. 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," she further said.

"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," the actress stated. 

39-year-old added, "Two days before the ChatGPT 4.0 demo was released, Mr. Altman contacted my agent, asking me to reconsider. Before we could connect, the system was out there. As a result of their actions, I was forced to hire legal counsel, who wrote two letters to Mr. Altman and OpenAl, setting out what they had done and asking them to detail the exact process by which they created the  'Sky' voice."

"Consequently, OpenAl reluctantly agreed to take down the 'Sky' voice. In a time when we are all grappling with deepfakes and the protection of our own likeness, our work, and our own identities, I believe these are questions that deserve absolute clarity. I look forward to resolution in the form of transparency and the passage of appropriate legislation to help ensure that individual rights are protected," Johansson concluded.

'Sky' was not an imitation'

In their announcement on Monday, May 20, OpenAI stated that the 'Sky' voice was not an "imitation" of Johansson's voice.

The corporation stated that, in addition to other available voices, 'Sky' was recorded by a professional actor. Due to privacy concerns, they would not disclose the actors' names. While OpenAI showcased a product demonstration on May 13, the voice chat capability has been available since September 2023.

In November of last year, Variety reported that Johansson and her attorney took action against an AI company for using her likeness in an advertisement featuring AI-generated images of the star.

Scarlett Johansson's statement draws attention on social media 

Netizens reacted to Johansson's statement with a YouTube user saying, "Yes please lean into the Her comparison!! I hope they pay Scarlett for the rights and we all get the voice that we're actually wanting our Al companion to sound like." [sic]

Another user said, "She did it right." A user said, "Celebrities can not take control of voices, now everyone that have a voice close to a celebrity will be banned to have a voice." [sic]

One more user said, "the problem here is sounding similar and mimicking are two different things. humans are allowed to intentionally mimic others for profit yet a machine can't unintentionally do the same? it's a double based on the stigma against ai." [sic]

The next user said, "Its crucial that Scarlett Johansson was explicitly asked to be a voice and refused to do it." [sic]

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