Scarlett Johansson turned down OpenAI’s offer before using an “eerily similar” voice

Scarlett Johansson says she turned down OpenAI’s offer to voice the artificial intelligence research organization’s new ChatGPT 4.0 system, “Sky,” which she says sounds exactly like her.

The actress told Page Six in a statement on Monday that she received the offer in September 2023 from CEO Sam Altman.

“He told me that he thought by speaking out about the system, I could bridge the gap between tech companies and creators and help consumers feel comfortable with the seismic shifts affecting people and Al. He said he thought my voice would be comforting to people,” she said.

“After much consideration and for personal reasons, I declined this offer.”

After OpenAI organized a live voice demonstration last week, Johansson, 39, said her “friends, family and the general public have noticed how much the newest system called ‘Sky’ resembles her.”

She pointed out that many have compared “Sky” to her voice in the 2013 film “Her”, about a man who falls in love with “Samantha”, the female voice of his computer’s operating system.

“When I heard the demo released, I was shocked, angry and in disbelief that Mr. Altman would use a voice that sounded so eerily similar to mine that my closest friends and news outlets couldn’t tell the difference,” Johansson told us, going on to mention that Altman “he even suggested that the similarity was intentional” when he said it tweeted the word “she” after the company announced a new version of ChatGPT.

Two days earlier, Johansson claimed that Altman asked her to “reconsider” the offer, but before they could “come to an understanding”, a demo of “Sky” was released.

Therefore, she said she was “forced to retain legal counsel,” who sent two letters to Altman and OpenAl “asking them to describe in detail the exact process by which they created the ‘Sky’ voice.”

According to the movie star, that’s when “OpenAl reluctantly agreed to remove the ‘Sky’ voice.”

She explained: “At a time when we are all grappling with deepfakes and the protection of our own likeness, our work and our identity, I believe these are questions that deserve absolute clarity.

“I look forward to a transparency solution and the passage of appropriate legislation that will help ensure that individual rights are protected.”

NPR was the first to report this news.

Late Sunday evening — just a day after Johansson’s husband, Colin Jost, joked about the experience on “Saturday Night Live” — OpenAI announced via X“We have heard questions about how we selected voices on ChatGPT, especially on Sky. We are working to suspend use of Sky until these issues are resolved.”

The company too he dropped a link to one of his blog postswhich stated: “Sky’s voice is not an imitation of Scarlett Johansson, but belongs to another professional actress who uses her own natural voice.”

OpenAI said it would not reveal the woman’s name “for protection.” [her] Privacy.”