Her, For Real: Johansson vs OpenAI's Copycat Voice
Key Points
- Scarlett Johansson accused OpenAI of cloning her voice for Sky without consent
- OpenAI approached Johansson twice to voice ChatGPT, she declined both times
- Sky voice was pulled immediately after Johansson's legal threat
- Raised fundamental questions about AI voice cloning and celebrity rights
- OpenAI claimed Sky was voiced by a different actress
When OpenAI demoed GPT-4o's "Sky" voice in May 2024, actress Scarlett Johansson accused the company of copying her voice without permission. Altman had tweeted "her" — a reference to the Spike Jonze film. OpenAI paused the voice amid legal threats.
OpenAI made an AI voice that sounded like Scarlett Johansson. She said they copied her without asking. They had to take it down.
Sides
Critics
No critics identified
Defenders
Denied copying Johansson's voice, said voice actor was different person
Paused Sky voice and stated it was not based on Johansson
Noise Level
Forecast
This incident will likely accelerate voice rights legislation. Expect more celebrities to proactively protect their vocal likeness through legal filings.
Based on current signals. Events may develop differently.
Timeline
OpenAI pauses Sky voice amid legal pressure
Company pulls the voice and Altman apologizes for poor communication
Scarlett Johansson accuses OpenAI of copying her voice
Johansson reveals she was approached to voice ChatGPT, declined, and hired lawyers
OpenAI demos Sky voice for GPT-4o
Altman tweets single word "her" referencing the Spike Jonze film about AI romance
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