OpenAI pauses voice that many compared to Scarlett Johansson’s

 

OpenAI allows users to talk to ChatGPT with a variety of voices, but it’s pulling the voice that many people said resembled Scarlett Johansson’s from the movie “Her.”

Scarlett Johansson smiles on the red carpet

OpenAI said Monday that it is pausing use of a voice in its projects that many people have compared to Scarlett Johansson’s in the sci-fi dystopia movie “Her.”

The company said in a post on X that it was “working to pause” the use of “Sky,” the voice that resembles Johansson’s, while it addresses “questions” about how it was selected.

In a blog post Sunday, OpenAI wrote: “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.” The company said it would not reveal the actor’s identity to protect privacy.

Since September, OpenAI has allowed users to interface with its popular chatbot ChatGPT using a variety of voices. The chatbot can respond via text or with one of six audio voices, including “Sky,” which the company says were cast and recorded by a team of professional actors.

OpenAI said Monday that it is pausing use of a voice in its projects that many people have compared to Scarlett Johansson’s in the sci-fi dystopia movie “Her.”

The company said in a post on X that it was “working to pause” the use of “Sky,” the voice that resembles Johansson’s, while it addresses “questions” about how it was selected.

In a blog post Sunday, OpenAI wrote: “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.” The company said it would not reveal the actor’s identity to protect privacy.

Since September, OpenAI has allowed users to interface with its popular chatbot ChatGPT using a variety of voices. The chatbot can respond via text or with one of six audio voices, including “Sky,” which the company says were cast and recorded by a team of professional actors.