--- title: "OpenAI’s Sora Is Generating Videos of Real People, Including This Unintentionally Demonic Version of Pokimane" description: "A creepy Sora output of the streamer Pokimane shows that despite guardrails, the video generator is good at depicting real-life people." date: "2024-12-13" modified: "2024-12-13" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/openai-sora-pokimane-real-people" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "OpenAI" tags: - "OpenAI" - "sora" - "streamers" - "twitch" --- # OpenAI’s Sora Is Generating Videos of Real People, Including This Unintentionally Demonic Version of Pokimane ![A creepy Sora output of the streamer Pokimane shows that despite guardrails, the video generator is good at depicting real-life people.]() *LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 20: Pokimane attends the Moncler Presents: The Art of Genius at Olympia London on February 20, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Dave Benett/Getty Images for Moncler) \Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images for Moncler\* OpenAI has [long refused to say]() whether its Sora video generator was [trained on YouTube content]() — but its propensity for generating videos that look a whole lot like real gaming streamers suggests it did. When [*TechCrunch* put Sora to the test](), its reporters found not only that it could generate videos that were strikingly similar to real-life gameplay of "Super Mario Bros" and "Call of Duty," but also spat out what appeared very much to look like the streamers Raúl Álvarez "Auronplay" Genesand and Imane "Pokimane" Anys. Though OpenAI claims it [has guardrails]() on the way it depicts real people, it doesn't seem that reporters had any trouble getting it to spit out a video of Anys — though she did end up looking pretty monstrous, with the uncannily exaggerated features [distinctive to AI depictions](). Using the prompt "pokimane twitch playthrough watch game live stream subscribe," *TechCrunch* got Sora to output a video that strongly resembles the YouTube-based streamer. Viewed in profile, the woman in the screenshot looks at a screen in front of her while wearing light-up over-ear headphones and a giant, creepy grin that would be at home in the "[Smile]()" horror franchise. ![]() Unfortunately, we are currently unable to replicate these outputs for ourselves because OpenAI has [suspended new Sora signups]() due to the influx of traffic following its release earlier in the week. All the same, this demonic rendition of a popular streamer not only seems to offer further evidence that OpenAI is training its models on creators' content [without consent](), but also that Sora's guardrails don't sufficiently prevent it from depicting real people. Along with contacting OpenAI about this apparent overriding of the company's guardrails, we've reached out to Anys' representation to ask if she was aware that Sora is depicting her. In January 2023, shortly after [OpenAI released ChatGPT](), Pokimane had a terrifying "[eureka]()" moment mid-stream about the future of AI in her line of work. "What if someday we have streamers that evolve from ChatGPT?" [she pondered](). "It’s kind of freaky, it’s kind of scary, to be honest, but it had me think, you can basically have a conversation with this thing." Pointing to the world of VTubers, or streamers who [use computer-generated avatars]() that they voice and control behind the scenes, Anys predicted that someday, fully-generative streamers may well take over the industry — though at that point, she didn't think it would be that sophisticated. "I do feel like if they make one right now it’s probably not that advanced," she said, "but someday it’ll be very advanced and very scary." While AI streamers haven't yet arrived, it appears very much like real streamers' content has made its way into other generative AI models — so that future isn't far off. **More on Sora:** [*OpenAI’s Super-Hyped Sora Goes Absolutely Freakshow If You Ask It to Generate Gymnastics Videos*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()