Scarlett Johansson has expressed her frustration at OpenAI, the organization responsible for ChatGPT, for using her voice likeness without her consent. In a statement obtained by NBC News, the actor detailed her concerns about the company's new AI voice systems bearing similarities to her voice.

Johansson stated that she has taken legal action against OpenAI after its CEO, Sam Altman, approached her twice to hire her as the voice for their newly launched ChatGPT 4.0 system. The initial discussion regarding the use of her voice took place in September 2023, but Johansson declined the offer for personal reasons.

However, nine months later, Johansson became aware that the newly released AI system named "Sky" sounded remarkably similar to her voice. This discovery led her to feel shocked, angry, and disbelieving that Altman would pursue a voice that closely resembled hers to the extent that even her close friends and news outlets couldn't differentiate.

Johansson also highlighted a social media post by Altman on May 13, referencing the 2013 film "Her," where she voiced a fictional AI chat system. This reference further compounded her concerns about the unauthorized use of her voice likeness by OpenAI.

Johansson further detailed that Altman hinted at the intentional similarity by tweeting a single word, "her," referencing the film where she voiced Samantha, a chat system forming a close bond with a human.

Two days before the ChatGPT 4.0 demo launch, Altman followed up with Johansson's agent, urging her to reconsider.

Johansson stated that due to these events, she was compelled to seek legal representation, and her teams sent two letters to Altman and OpenAI, requesting clarity on the creation process of the "Sky" voice. Eventually, OpenAI agreed to remove the "Sky" voice, albeit reluctantly.

She emphasized the importance of clarity and legislation to safeguard individual rights, particularly in the era of deepfakes and the protection of one's likeness and work.

Altman responded to NBC News, clarifying that the resemblance between Johansson's voice and OpenAI's Sky was unintentional. He mentioned that they had selected the voice actor for Sky before contacting Johansson and expressed regret for any misunderstanding, promising to cease using Sky's voice out of respect for Johansson.

In the summer of 2023, SAG-AFTRA initiated a nearly five-month strike, with concerns over AI and fair compensation at the forefront. SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher emphasized the need for negotiations to protect actors' likenesses and ensure fair compensation for their work used in training AI systems.