--- title: "Scarlett Johansson Says OpenAI Asked to Use Her Voice for ChatGPT, and When She Said No They Did It Anyway" description: "OpenAI allegedly asked Scarlett Johansson if it could use her voice for the latest ChatGPT update — and then pushed on without her consent." date: "2024-05-21" modified: "2024-05-21" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/scarlett-johansson-openai-voice-consent" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "OpenAI" tags: - "chatgpt" - "OpenAI" - "sam altman" - "scarlett johansson" --- # Scarlett Johansson Says OpenAI Asked to Use Her Voice for ChatGPT, and When She Said No They Did It Anyway ![OpenAI allegedly asked Scarlett Johansson if it could use her voice for the latest ChatGPT update — and then pushed on without her consent.]() *\Image: Vittorio Zunino Celotto via Getty / Futurism\* OpenAI used a voice that sounded a *lot* like the actress Scarlett Johansson's as its new ChatGPT voice assistant, as [many pointed out]() after its debut. Now things just got a whole lot more explosive, with Johansson saying that company's leadership asked her permission to use her voice — and then went ahead and did it anyway when she said no. Johansson [said in a new statement]() that OpenAI's Sam Altman wanted to hire her to voice the AI assistant, known as "Sky," which is one of five voice options available in the [latest update of ChatGPT]() and was [featured prominently in promotional videos](). The "Lost in Translation" star ultimately declined, and was appalled when she heard how much the finished product sounded like her own voice. "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," Johansson said. Worse, it feels almost indisputable that the company is explicitly cribbing her performance in the 2013 romantic tragedy "Her," with [Altman tweeting the single word "her]()" as the chatbot launched — a move, in Johansson's reckoning, that "insinuated that the similarity was intentional." Just before the ChatGPT 4o launch, the actress wrote, the CEO contacted her agent asking her to reconsider her endorsement of Sky's voice. But before she had a chance to respond, "the system was out there." "As a result of their actions, I was forced to hire legal counsel, who wrote two letters to Mr. Altman and OpenAI, setting out what they had done and asking them to detail the exact process by which they created the 'Sky' voice," Johansson continued. "Consequently, OpenAI reluctantly agreed to take down the 'Sky' voice." The company's response isn't doing anything to make it look less guilty. Before Johansson went public, OpenAI [paused the Sky voice option]() and [released a blog post]() about its selection process, claiming that hundreds of submissions were used to create the five voice options. In the post, OpenAI denied that Johansson's voice was used and said it instead belonged to a different voice actress. Then, after Johansson went after the company, Altman released [his own ]()[statement]() saying that Sky had been paused "out of respect" for the star. The fallout for OpenAI may well extend beyond a bungled PR move illustrating its "[ask for forgiveness, not permission]()" ethos. The courts have [often favored celebrities]() whose likenesses have been deployed without permission, and the fact that it explicitly reached out to Johansson — nevermind Altman's coy nod to the ripping off on social media — won't help its case. And Johansson has a history of successful litigation: a few years back, she [took on the entertainment behemoth Disney]() over a compensation dispute and forced a settlement. Maybe the most significant lesson, though, is the one that the public will take: that from its leadership on down, OpenAI believes it can seize anyone's intellectual property or likeness and do whatever it wants with it — permission be damned. "In a time when we are all grappling with deepfakes and the protection of our own likeness, our own work, our own identities, I believe these are questions that deserve absolute clarity," she wrote. "I look forward to resolution in the form of transparency and the passage of appropriate legislation to help ensure that individual rights are protected." **More on OpenAI:** [*The New ChatGPT Has a Huge Problem in Chinese*]() ## 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]()