OpenAI Sustained a Reversal of the Sky Voice in a Demo of “Her” by Johansson, the Artist Behind the Scenes
Openai showed a synthetic but sweet voice in a product demo last week that reminded many viewers of the one played by her in the movie Her. One of those viewers was Johansson herself, who promptly hired legal counsel and sent letters to OpenAI demanding an explanation, according to a statement released later. The company stopped using Sky and published a statement saying that it was not an imitation but a different actress using her own natural speaking voice.
On Monday, Johansson issued a statement claiming to have forced that reversal, after her lawyers demanded OpenAI clarify how the new voice was created.
“When I heard the release 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 statement reads. It notes that Altman appeared to encourage the world to connect the demo with Johansson’s performance by tweeting out “her,” in reference to the movie, on May 13.
OpenAI says it did not intend for the Sky voice to sound like Johansson, but that doesn’t necessarily protect the company. Albers says that even though OpenAI did not explicitly mention Johansson, consumers were already pointing out the similarities. The commentary began while OpenAI’s demo of ChatGPT-4o was ongoing, and Saturday Night Live even joked about it.
The conflict with Johansson adds to OpenAI’s existing battles with artists, writers, and other creatives. The company is already defending a number of lawsuits alleging it inappropriately used copyrighted content to train its algorithms, including suits from The New York Times and authors including George R.R. Martin.
It’s easy to create realistic voices and create new threats withrative artificial intelligence. In January, voters in New Hampshire were bombarded with robocalls featuring a deepfaked voice message from Joe Biden. In March, OpenAI said that it had developed a technology that could clone someone’s voice from a 15-second clip, but the company said it would not release the technology because of how it might be misused.
Using Trademarks to Protect a Celebrity’s Name, Voice, or Face in the Presence of an Unregistered Trademark
“There are a few courses of actions she can take, but case law supports her position,” says Purvi Patel Albers, partner at the law firm Haynes Boone with a focus on trademarks and copyright.
Albers says that celebrities like Johansson can use right to publicity laws to protect themselves from being used without their permission. “If you misappropriate someone’s name, likeness, or voice, you could be violating their right to publicity,” Albers says.
To win in these cases, celebrities generally have to prove that their voice or other identifying features are unregistered trademarks and that, by imitating them, consumers could connect them to the product being sold, even if they’re not involved. Identifying what is distinctive about her voice may be easier for a celebrity who starred in an Oscar-winning movie.
It’s not easy because there is not a federal right to publicity laws, but the laws are state by state. Every state has its own likeness laws, which vary from state to state, like New York’s which allows each individual to control the commercial use of their name, picture, voice, and signature. This right extends to a deceased person, whose estate must give prior consent for the use of a computer-generated replica. California does not mention using digital replicas in its law. Commercial activities that use a living person’s voice without their consent are not allowed in California. It says that if a voice, face, or name were used, they could violate these protections.