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Scarlett Johansson Has OpenAI ChatGPT Questions/Concerns: Statement

Scarlett Johansson's statement offered a timeline of OpenAI's contacts with her and her concerns over the company's ChatGPT Voice Mode demo.

Earlier today, we wondered if Saturday Night Live co-head writers and "Weekend Update" anchors Colin Jost & Michael Che's "Joke Swap" was what finally got the attention of OpenAI regarding its new ChatGPT model that includes a Voice Mode. "ChatGPT has released a new voice assistant feature inspired by Scarlett Johansson's AI character in 'Her,'" Jost began the joke written by Che about Jost's wife, actress Scarlett Johansson. "Which I've never bothered to watch because without that body, what's the point of listening." While it was a great issue at the time, it appears to have been the tipping point on a matter of growing disagreement between Johansson and OpenAI regarding the use of her voice.

When folks had a chance to check out the video from OpenAI last week previewing the new ChatGPT model's Voice Mode – an expressive voice meant to answer our questions – more than a few noticed how one of the voices was a little too similar to Johansson's actual voice – an interesting, ten-ton irony considering the actress took on the voice of an emotive AI in 2013's Her. Well, it looks like the reactions – and getting the not-so-high honor of being spotlighted by Jost and Che – were enough to get OpenAI to announce that it was pausing the Sky voice until those voice similarity issues can be cleared up.

"We've heard questions about how we chose the voices in ChatGPT, especially Sky. We are working to pause the use of Sky while we address them," OpenAI said in a statement shared in a company blog post that went live earlier today. For their part, the company was looking to make it clear that the voice many believed belonged to Johansson was actually from another actress. "We believe that AI voices should not deliberately mimic a celebrity's distinctive voice – Sky's voice is not an imitation of Scarlett Johansson but belongs to a different professional actress using her own natural speaking voice. To protect their privacy, we cannot share the names of our voice talents," the blog post added.

But based on a statement released by Johansson earlier today, there seems to be some growing confusion over the matter. "Last September, I received an offer from [OpenAI CEO] Sam Altman, who wanted to hire me to voice the current ChatGPT 4.0 system. He told me that he felt that by my voicing the system, I could bridge the gap between tech companies and creatives and help consumers to feel comfortable with the seismic shift concerning humans and Al. He said he felt that my voice would be comforting to people," the statement begins, with Johansson noting that "after much consideration and for personal reasons," she "declined the offer."

Johansson goes on to write, "Nine months later, my friends, family and the general public all noted how much the newest system named 'Sky' sounded like me." From there, the actress expresses that she was "shocked, angered and in disbelief" over how similar the voice in the released demo sounded to her – while also noting a reference she believes that Altman made to her 2013 film. "When I heard the released 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 continues. "Mr. Altman even insinuated that the similarity was intentional, tweeting a single word 'her' – a reference to the film in which I voiced a chat system, Samantha, who forms an intimate relationship with a human."

Johansson goes on to say that Altman reached out to her agent with the hope of getting the actress to reconsider but didn't wait for a response before rolling out a demo of the Voice Mode: "Two days before the ChatGPT 4.0 demo was released, Mr. Altman contacted my agent, asking me to reconsider. Before we could connect, the system was out there." Johansson continued, "As a result of their actions, I was forced to hire legal counsel, who wrote two letters to Mr. Altman and OpenAl, setting out what they had done and asking them to detail the exact process by which they created the 'Sky' voice. Consequently, OpenAl reluctantly agreed to take down the 'Sky' voice."

Johansson ended her statement with her hopes – both in the short-term and long-term – when it comes to this matter and other matters involving artificial intelligence and the right to control one's likeness. "In a time when we are all grappling with deepfakes and the protection of our own likeness, our own work, our own identities, I believe these are questions that deserve absolute clarity. I look forward to resolution in the form of transparency and the passage of appropriate legislation to help ensure that individual rights are protected"

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