OpenAI, the company behind the popular AI chatbot ChatGPT, announced on Monday that it plans to discontinue the use of one of its voice options, named “Sky,” after actor Scarlett Johansson claimed it sounded “eerily similar” to her own voice. Johansson, who famously voiced an AI assistant in the 2013 film “Her,” expressed her concerns about the voice and the process by which OpenAI created it.
In a post on the social media platform X, OpenAI stated that it was “working to pause” the Sky voice and address the questions surrounding how the company selects the lifelike audio options for ChatGPT. Johansson revealed that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman had approached her in September, asking if she would lend her voice to the system, but she declined the offer.
Upon hearing the released demo of the Sky voice, Johansson was shocked and angered, stating that even her closest friends and news outlets could not distinguish between her voice and the AI-generated one. She hired lawyers who wrote letters to Altman, inquiring about the process of creating the voice, and OpenAI “reluctantly” agreed to take down the Sky voice.
OpenAI had previously attempted to debunk theories about Johansson’s involvement in a blog post, stating that the voice of Sky belongs to a “different professional actress” and that AI voices should not deliberately mimic a celebrity’s distinctive voice. However, they could not share the name of the actress for privacy reasons.
In response to Johansson’s concerns, Altman issued a statement clarifying that the voice actor behind Sky was cast before any outreach to Johansson and that the voice was never intended to resemble hers. He apologized for the lack of clear communication and confirmed that the use of Sky’s voice has been paused in their products out of respect for the actress.
The incident has sparked discussions about the gendered ways in which tech companies develop and engage with voice assistants, as well as the potential implications of AI-generated voices that closely resemble those of real individuals.
As ChatGPT continues to evolve and become more sophisticated, it is crucial for companies like OpenAI to consider the ethical implications of their technology and maintain transparency in their processes.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.