Alex Omenye
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman issued an apology to Scarlett Johansson on Tuesday following the Hollywood star’s expressed outrage over a new artificial intelligence-generated voice that she claimed bore a striking resemblance to her own.
The voice in question, named “Sky,” was unveiled last week alongside OpenAI’s release of its more humanlike GPT-4 AI technology.
In his statement, Altman clarified, “The voice of Sky is not Scarlett Johansson’s, and it was never intended to resemble hers.” He further explained, “We selected the voice actor behind Sky before reaching out to Ms. Johansson. Out of respect for her, we have suspended the use of Sky’s voice in our products. We apologize to Ms. Johansson for any lack of clarity in our communication.”
Johansson had expressed shock and disbelief, stating that Altman’s pursuit of a voice so similar to hers left her feeling angered. She revealed that Altman had approached her in September about potentially collaborating with OpenAI to develop a synthetic voice, an offer she declined.
During a demonstration, Sky’s voice displayed a flirtatious and humorous demeanor, seamlessly transitioning between topics—a departure from most existing chatbots. The technology and tone of the voice drew comparisons to the AI character voiced by Johansson in the 2013 film “Her,” which Altman had previously cited as inspiration for the direction of AI interactions.
In a blog post, OpenAI disclosed that it began auditioning voice actors for its AI models in early 2023, seeking traits like a “timeless” and “trustworthy” voice. The company emphasized that it cannot disclose the identities of the voice actors to safeguard their privacy, asserting that “AI voices should not intentionally mimic a celebrity’s distinct voice.”
The controversy surrounding Sky’s voice arises shortly after OpenAI disbanded its “superalignment” team, dedicated to mitigating the long-term risks of artificial intelligence. The team members have since been reassigned to other projects and research initiatives within the company.
