Hollywood actress Scarlett Johansson has spearheaded a major industry campaign accusing technology companies of committing "theft" by using copyrighted artistic work to train artificial intelligence models without permission.
High-Profile Coalition Demands Ethical AI Practices
The open letter, organised by the Human Artistry Campaign's Stealing Isn't Innovation movement, has attracted support from numerous entertainment industry luminaries. Alongside Johansson, signatories include fellow Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett, Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan, and the iconic rock band REM.
Other prominent figures lending their names to the campaign include actors Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Olivia Munn, musicians Aimee Mann, MGMT, Common, Cyndi Lauper, and Simon Le Bon, as well as acclaimed author Jonathan Franzen.
Direct Accusations Against Tech Giants
The letter delivers a stark message to technology companies, stating: "America's creative community is the envy of the world and creates jobs, economic growth, and exports. But rather than respect and protect this valuable asset, some of the biggest tech companies, many backed by private equity and other funders, are using American creators' work to build AI platforms without authorisation or regard for copyright law."
It continues with a powerful declaration: "Artists, writers, and creators of all kinds are banding together with a simple message: Stealing our work is not innovation. It's not progress. It's theft – plain and simple."
Proposed Solution Through Licensing
The campaign doesn't merely criticise current practices but proposes an alternative approach. The letter highlights that some AI companies have already demonstrated responsible behaviour by engaging in licensing deals and partnerships to obtain content ethically.
"A better way exists: through licensing deals and partnerships, some AI companies have taken the responsible, ethical route to obtaining the content and materials they wish to use," the letter states. "It is possible to have it all. We can have advanced, rapidly developing AI and ensure creators' rights are respected."
Johansson's Personal Experience with AI
This isn't Johansson's first confrontation with artificial intelligence concerns. The actress previously spoke out against OpenAI when the company launched a ChatGPT voice assistant that sounded remarkably similar to her own voice.
Johansson expressed being "shocked" and "angered" by how "eerily similar" the chatbot sounded to her, which prompted OpenAI to announce it would "pause" the use of the controversial voice feature.
The growing coalition of entertainment industry professionals represents a significant challenge to technology companies developing AI systems, demanding fundamental changes to how creative content is obtained and used in artificial intelligence training processes.
