SAG-AFTRA, the world’s largest labor union representing performers, announced on Tuesday at CES 2024 that it has signed an agreement with artificial intelligence voice technology company Replica Studios.
The agreement will allow union members to license digital replicas of their voices for use in video games.
As AI continues to expand into more areas of life, its ability to mimic famous voices has become controversial. In 2023, an artist who goes by the name Ghostwriter released Heart on My Sleeve, a song that uses generative AI to mimic the voices of musicians Drake and The Weeknd, though apparently neither of those stars had anything to do with it. That song sparked a debate about whether it should be eligible for a Grammy Award, and Ghostwriter said at the time that he believes artists should financially benefit if AI copies their distinct voices.
But this is the first time a group such as SAG-AFTRA has attempted to codify consent and compensation concerning the use of AI mimicking performer voices.
AI and the Hollywood strike
AI was a major issue in the union’s 2023 strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which saw performers join already-striking writers on the picket lines in July. The strike ran until November, and was the longest movie and television strike in the union’s 90-year history. As a result, studios are now required to obtain consent from and pay actors for use of their AI-generated likeness.
“Artificial intelligence has dominated the headlines, and for most performers, the best protection against the unauthorized digital simulation of their voice, likeness and/or performance is a SAG-AFTRA contract,” said union president and actor Fran Drescher in a statement Tuesday. SAG-AFTRA has over 160,000 members.
National executive director and chief SAG-AFTRA negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland said at a press conference held at CES in Las Vegas that the union had been involved with AI issues for almost a decade.
Replica…
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