OpenAI is removing one of the voices used by ChatGPT after users noticed it bore a resemblance to Scarlett Johansson. The company announced on Monday that it would be pausing the use of the voice, named Sky, which was demoed with the new GPT-4o model last week.
“We believe that AI voices should not deliberately mimic a celebrity’s distinctive voice—Sky’s voice is not an imitation of Scarlett Johansson but belongs to a different professional actress using her own natural speaking voice,” the company stated in a blog post. “To protect their privacy, we cannot share the names of our voice talents.”
A video of the demo circulated on social media as users pointed out the voice’s similarity to Johansson’s. Some poked fun at the voice for being overly flirtatious, while others compared it to a male fantasy.
The flirty voice has drawn parallels to the 2013 film “Her,” where Johansson voices a seductive virtual assistant. In the film, the main character, played by Joaquin Phoenix, ends up falling in love with the virtual assistant.
Although the company hasn’t officially compared Sky’s voice to Johansson’s, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman tweeted the word “Her” after the company’s event.
The demo was intended to exhibit the chatbot’s enhanced conversational abilities but gained viral attention when the sultry voice giggled at almost everything an OpenAI employee said. At one point, the chatbot remarked, “Wow, that’s quite the outfit you’ve got on,” and later commented, “Stop it, you’re making me blush” after receiving a compliment.
In its blog post, OpenAI emphasized that it wants its chatbot’s voices to be “approachable” and to “inspire trust,” aiming for “warm, engaging, confidence-inspiring, charismatic” qualities.
Looking forward, OpenAI plans to “introduce additional voices in ChatGPT to better match the diverse interests and preferences of users.”
