Scarlett Johansson takes legal action over ChatGPT voice similarity

OpenAI, the company responsible for the development of artificial intelligence, caused significant controversy. One of the voices used in ChatGPT sounded suspiciously similar to Scarlett Johansson's voice. Surprised by the situation, the actress took legal steps to learn more about creating this voice. As reported by TechCrunch, in light of the problem, OpenAI agreed to temporarily suspend the use of that voice.

In an official statement, Scarlett Johansson expressed her surprise and concern that the voice used in ChatGPT sounded almost identical to her own. The actress explained that for personal reasons, she had rejected OpenAI's offer to use her voice, which she received in September last year. Therefore, she was later shocked when she heard from friends that the voice used in the presented version of GPT-4o's tool sounded very similar to her own.

Adding fuel to the fire, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman posted a tweet containing the word "Her", which suggested a deliberate reference to the film starring Johansson. She had lent her voice to a virtual assistant in that film, with whom the main character, played by Joaquin Phoenix, falls in love. Moreover, according to Johansson, the head of OpenAI had contacted her agent two days before the release of the ChatGPT 4.0 demo, asking them to reconsider the proposal to use her voice. Before the actress could respond, the system had already premiered.

After intervention from Johansson's lawyer, OpenAI assures that the voice used in ChatGPT did not imitate Johansson's voice but belonged to another actress. The company is committed to creating diverse voices that meet various user needs. Johansson believes that the entire situation highlights essential issues related to deepfakes, the protection of image and identity rights, and ethical boundaries in working with AI, showing how vital appropriate legal regulations are in this field.

Both sides have declared their willingness to resolve the situation transparently and with respect for the rights of all involved. OpenAI apologised to Johansson and suspended using the controversial voice, explaining its intentions and emphasising its respect for the actress.

Interestingly, this is not the first instance where Scarlett Johansson had to intervene legally regarding AI projects' unauthorised use of her voice or image. On 28th October 2023, a commercial for the Lisa AI: 90s Yearbook & Avatar app was published on the platform X. The commercial used actual footage of the actress from the set of the movie "Black Widow", which had been modified using AI technology to promote the app's capabilities in generating images and voices. Since the commercial used Johansson's name, photo, and voice without her consent, and the ad gained significant popularity, the actress took legal action against the app's creators. As a result, the commercial was removed.