According to an article on Yahoo News, Scarlett Johansson has initiated legal action against OpenAI, alleging that the company used her voice and likeness without permission in one of their AI applications. Johansson's legal team claims that OpenAI's new AI model, GPT-4o, features a voice that closely resembles Johansson’s distinctive tone, particularly reminiscent of her role as Samantha in the 2013 film Her. This model was showcased at a recent OpenAI event where it demonstrated advanced real-time conversational abilities, drawing comparisons to the AI character Johansson voiced in the movie.

The advertisement in question, created by the AI image-generating app "Lisa AI: 90s Yearbook & Avatar," used an AI-generated deepfake of Johansson to promote the app. The ad, which has since been removed from the internet, featured a disclaimer stating that the images were produced by AI and had nothing to do with Johansson. Despite this, Johansson's representatives confirmed that she was not consulted or compensated for this usage, leading to the lawsuit.

Johansson's attorney, Kevin Yorn, emphasized that they do not take these matters lightly and will pursue all available legal remedies. This incident highlights the broader issue of AI-generated celebrity deepfakes, which are becoming increasingly common without proper consent or compensation. Other celebrities, including Tom Hanks and Sarah Silverman, have also taken legal action against unauthorized AI-generated content using their likenesses.