This legislation, most of which will take effect in 2026, is designed to stimulate innovation in Europe while restricting potential abuses
‘Sky’ is going on hiatus. OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, announced on Monday 20 May that it would be modifying one of its digital voices, after actress Scarlett Johansson accused Sam Altman’s company of reproducing her voice without permission.
OpenAI said in a statement, ‘We have addressed the concerns regarding our voice selection for ChatGPT.’ As a result, ‘we are working to suspend the use of Sky while we investigate these concerns.’ However, the company denied any intentional imitation, claiming that Sky’s voice had been developed based on several actresses, not specifically Scarlett Johansson.
Actress says she turned down an offer from OpenAI
Scarlett Johansson accuses OpenAI of deliberately copying her voice without her consent. ‘Last September, Sam Altman offered me the chance to become the voice of the ChatGPT 4.0 system,’ she says. ‘He thought my voice would bring comfort to users,’ she adds, noting that she turned down the offer.
‘When I heard the demo released, I was shocked, angry and stunned by the striking resemblance to my voice, to the point where my friends and the media couldn’t tell the difference,’ says the actress.