OpenAI on Monday said it plans to halt the use of one of its ChatGPT voices that 香蕉视频直播淗er香蕉视频直播� actor Scarlett Johansson says sounds 香蕉视频直播渆erily similar香蕉视频直播� to her own.
In a on the social media platform X, OpenAI said it is 香蕉视频直播渨orking to pause香蕉视频直播� Sky 香蕉视频直播� the name of one of five voices that ChatGPT users can chose to speak with. The company said it had 香蕉视频直播渉eard questions香蕉视频直播� about how it selects the lifelike audio options available for its flagship artificial intelligence chatbot, particularly Sky, and wanted to address them.
Among those raising questions was Johansson, who famously voiced a fictional, and at the time futuristic, AI assistant in the 2013 film
Johansson issued a statement saying that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman had approached her in September asking her if she would lend her voice to the system, saying he felt it would be 香蕉视频直播渃omforting to people香蕉视频直播� not at ease with the technology. She said she declined the offer.
香蕉视频直播淲hen 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,香蕉视频直播� Johansson said.
She said OpenAI 香蕉视频直播渞eluctantly香蕉视频直播� agreed to take down the Sky voice after she hired lawyers who wrote Altman letters asking about the process by which the company came up with the voice.
OpenAI had moved to debunk the internet香蕉视频直播檚 theories about Johansson in a blog post accompanying its earlier announcement aimed at detailing how ChatGPT香蕉视频直播檚 voices were chosen. The company that it believed AI voices 香蕉视频直播渟hould not deliberately mimic a celebrity香蕉视频直播檚 distinctive voice香蕉视频直播� and that the voice of Sky belongs to a 香蕉视频直播渄ifferent professional actress.香蕉视频直播� But it added that it could not share the name of that professional for privacy reasons.
In a statement sent to The Associated Press following Johansson香蕉视频直播檚 response late Monday, Altman said that OpenAI cast the voice actor behind Sky 香蕉视频直播渂efore any outreach香蕉视频直播� to Johansson.
香蕉视频直播淭he voice of Sky is not Scarlett Johansson香蕉视频直播檚, and it was never intended to resemble hers,香蕉视频直播� Altman said. 香蕉视频直播淥ut of respect for Ms. Johansson, we have paused using Sky香蕉视频直播檚 voice in our products. We are sorry to Ms. Johansson that we didn香蕉视频直播檛 communicate better.香蕉视频直播�
San Francisco-based OpenAI first rolled out voice capabilities for ChatGPT, which included the five different voices, in September, allowing users to engage in back-to-forth conversation with the AI assistant. 香蕉视频直播淰oice Mode香蕉视频直播� was originally just available to paid subscribers, but in November, OpenAI that the feature would become free for all users with the mobile app.
And ChatGPT香蕉视频直播檚 interactions are becoming more and more sophisticated. Last week, OpenAI said the can mimic human cadences in its verbal responses and can even try to detect people香蕉视频直播檚 moods.
OpenAI says the newest model, dubbed GPT-4o, works faster than previous versions and can reason across text, audio and video in real time. In a demonstration during OpenAI香蕉视频直播檚 May 13 announcement, the AI bot chatted in real time, adding emotion 香蕉视频直播� specifically 香蕉视频直播渕ore drama香蕉视频直播� 香蕉视频直播� to its voice as requested. It also took a stab at extrapolating a person香蕉视频直播檚 emotional state by looking at a selfie video of their face, aided in language translations, step-by-step math problems and more.
GPT-4o, short for 香蕉视频直播渙mni,香蕉视频直播� isn香蕉视频直播檛 widely available yet. It will progressively make its way to select users in the coming weeks and months. The model香蕉视频直播檚 text and image capabilities have already begun rolling out, and is set to reach even some of those that use ChatGPT香蕉视频直播檚 free tier 香蕉视频直播� but the new voice mode will just be available for paid subscribers of ChatGPT Plus.
While most have yet to get their hands on these newly announced features, the capabilities have conjured up even more comparisons to the Spike Jonze香蕉视频直播檚 dystopian romance 香蕉视频直播淗er,香蕉视频直播� which follows an introverted man (Joaquin Phoenix) who falls in love with an AI-operating system (Johansson), leading to many complications.
Altman appeared to tap into this, too 香蕉视频直播� simply the word 香蕉视频直播渉er香蕉视频直播� on the social media platform X the day of GPT-4o香蕉视频直播檚 unveiling.
Many reacting to the model香蕉视频直播檚 demos last week also found some of the interactions struck a strangely flirtatious tone. In one posted by OpenAI, a female-voiced ChatGPT compliments a company employee on 香蕉视频直播渞ocking an OpenAI hoodie,香蕉视频直播� for example, and in another the chatbot 香蕉视频直播渙h stop it, you香蕉视频直播檙e making me blush香蕉视频直播� after being told that it香蕉视频直播檚 amazing.
That香蕉视频直播檚 sparked some conversation on the gendered ways critics say tech companies have long used to develop and engage voice assistants 香蕉视频直播� dating back far before the latest wave of generative AI advanced the capabilities of AI chatbots. In 2019, the United Nations香蕉视频直播� culture and science organization built into default female-voiced assistants (like Apple香蕉视频直播檚 Siri to Amazon香蕉视频直播檚 Alexa), even when confronted with sexist insults and harassment.
香蕉视频直播淭his is clearly programmed to feed dudes香蕉视频直播� egos,香蕉视频直播� The Daily Show senior correspondent Desi Lydic said of GPT-4o in a segment last week. 香蕉视频直播淵ou can really tell that a man built this tech.香蕉视频直播�
Wyatte Grantham-philips, The Associated Press
