Matt Lucas and Hugh Bonneville among actors calling for law on AI voice cloning
A group of prominent UK actors and performers has petitioned the government to establish legal protections against the unauthorized use of their voices by AI cloning technology. They argue that current regulations are insufficient to protect their livelihoods and unique identities.
Why it matters
The rise of generative AI creates significant legal and ethical challenges regarding intellectual property rights and the protection of human creative labor.
Image source, BBC / Getty Images By Tom Gerken Technology reporter Published 34 minutes ago Actors including Matt Lucas, Hugh Bonneville and Nicola Coughlan have written to the UK government demanding greater protection against their voices being used by AI.
The performers are asking Prime Minister Andy Burnham to introduce legislation which would give every person in the UK a legal right to own their voice.
Voice clones are created by training AI on recordings of real people. Quick versions can be made in minutes from a few seconds of audio, but high-quality copycats tend to require hours.
Audiobook narrator Alice Sockett, who co-founded the campaign, called it "an existential threat to our entire industry".
"My voice is out there in the public domain but completely unprotected," she said.
"We're seeing voice theft increase every week."
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