Scarlett Johansson Says OpenAI Ripped Off Her Voice for ChatGPT

Johansson’s statement, relayed to WIRED by her publicist, claims that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman asked her last September to provide ChatGPT’s new voice but that she declined. She describes being astounded to see the company demo a new voice for ChatGPT last week that sounded like her anyway.

This alleged behavior by OpenAI erodes any trust I might have had in the company. Brazenly disregarding Johansson’s declination does not bode well for those of us who don’t have the resources to hire a legal team.

Perhaps this story will be an exhibit in the NYTimes’ lawsuit against OpenAI which alleges similar behavior: seemingly amicable negotiations that end with OpenAI doing whatever they want with content they don’t have permission to use.