Grand Theft Auto 5actorNed Lukecalls out an AI chatbot for using his voice without permission. The chatbot has since been deleted, with the service pulling it after Luke called the voice generator “garbage”.
The chatbot was based on Michael from GTA 5, and was available for anyone to use as recently as yesterday. Luke, who plays Michael, made it clear that he didn’t consent to his voice being used for the chatbot, an issue many gaming actors have encountered in recent months.
“This is f**king bullsh*t,“saysLuke, speaking on his Twitter account. “Absolutely nothing cool about ripping people off with some lame computer estimation of my voice. DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME ON THIS GARBAGE…”
Many actors have asked their fans to stop using AI voice generators, as they may be improving the technology that threatens their job opportunities.
The company behind the chatbot, WAME, has acknowledged the pushback but has fallen short of publicly apologising to Luke. In a statement toPCGamesN, WAME expressed its “profound understanding and concern”, and said it is committed to “advancing ethical AI practices”.
Luke is the latest gaming actor to call out the use of AI voice generators aimed at fans. We’ve previously spoken with other actors who are vocally against the practice, including Roger Clark, Yuri Lowenthal, and Cissy Jones.
Roger Clark and Ned Luke expanded on the issue in the replies, sharing how AI voice generators have impacted their lives. For example, Luke says that some have used the generators to " create bullsh*t racist rants”, passing them off as something he said. Clark sympathises, saying he doesn’t believe their union, SAG-AFTRA, will do enough to stop this from happening.
In its statement on the matter, WAME admits there was an “oversight in [its] initial approach”. It adds: “This incident has highlighted the intricate interplay between the advancement of AI technology and the ethical and legal realms. WAME commits to protecting the rights of voice actors and creators while advancing ethical AI practices.”
While legislation is yet to catch up with the rapid advancements in AI, many actors - especially those who specialise in voice work - have felt let down by a recent development with SAG-AFTRA. Despite weeks of strikes, the union recently signed an agreement with Replica Studios, allowing video game actors to agree to have their voices generated by AI. This only applies to Replica right now, and even then, the studio can only use a gaming actor’s voice if they have “informed consent”. Yet many actors in the gaming industry saw this as a betrayal, particularly since actors in other industries haven’t had to make these concessions.
