Morgan Freeman condemns “illegal fraud” by using an AI version of his voice

“Uncle Mo”: Morgan Freeman’s AI voice

Freeman has been an actor for five decades and his distinctive voice has been used as a narrator in numerous films and shows, including the Netflix documentary series Life on our planet and the 2004 film Million Dollar Baby.

Freeman’s post is believed to be in reference to a TikTok user named Justine (@justinescameraroll). The Los Angeles-based influencer, who has nearly 220,000 followers on TikTok and over 124,000 on Instagram, has posted several videos using the AI ​​imitation of Freeman’s voice.

When Justine posted a video titled “A Day in the Life of a Nepo Niece” a week ago, she posed as Freeman’s niece and used the AI ​​imitation of his voice to narrate a video about her travel experiences in Spain.

“Uncle Mo was booked and busy but I finally got him to tell me about my trip!…EMBLAMED!?” Justine captioned the video, which has received over 35,000 likes and 250,000 views since uploading.

Justine wanted to make a joke with her TikTok and wrote “#ai” at the end of her caption, but not everyone noticed.

Jahelis Castillo stumbled upon the video on TikTok and reshared it on her X account (@JahelisWasHere), telling her followers that Justine’s “uncle is Morgan Freeman and she gets him to narrate her vlogs about her daily life. She is the best at life and content creation. This is such an amazing gig.”

Castillo’s repost went viral, garnering nearly 215,000 likes, thousands of reposts, and over 16.5 million views. She later learned that Freeman’s narrative had been created using artificial intelligence and posted a warning under the video.

Castillo likely garnered attention for Justine’s videos by claiming it was Freeman’s voice and referring to her as his niece. Freeman became aware of the AI-narrated TikTok and wrote his explanation on X, after which the media noticed the AI ​​”fraud.”

After they settled on Daily MailTo set the record straight, Justine posted a new video claiming she was “having a little fun” and thought the videos “would be funny for other people too.”

“I thought it was obvious it was a joke… And now Uncle Mo is mad at me!” Justine explained to viewers.

“If anyone on his team is watching, I’m so sorry… I honestly just thought it was funny,” she added. “Please no cease and desist. Please no cease and desist.”

Justine did not apologize for any offense she may have made toward Freeman, but instead urged viewers to “use their judgement online” when dealing with content.

Celebrities are increasingly struggling with AI imitation

Freeman is not the only well-known name addressing privacy issues arising from the growing capabilities of AI.

Last month, actress Scarlett Johansson’s legal team said they would take action against OpenAI for developing an AI imitation of her voice unless the company discloses how the voice was originally constructed.

Johansson was approached by OpenAI founder Sam Altman in September last year. The company wanted to use the 39-year-old actress’ voice as one of the models for ChatGPT’s new “Voice Mode” feature, an offer she turned down.

“He told me he felt that by lending my voice to the system, I could bridge the gap between tech companies and creatives and help consumers feel comfortable with the massive shift in human and AI. He said he felt my voice would bring comfort to people,” Johansson said in a statement. “After careful consideration and for personal reasons, I declined the offer. Nine months later, my friends, family and the public noticed how much the newest system, called ‘Sky,’ sounded like me.”

Although she declined Altman’s request, OpenAI’s new “Sky” voice sounded eerily similar to Johannson’s and she was forced to take action against the company.

“When I heard the released demo, I was shocked, angry and couldn’t believe that Mr. Altman was aiming for a voice that sounded so eerily similar to mine that my closest friends and news outlets couldn’t tell the difference,” Johannson said.

“As a result of their actions, I was forced to engage legal counsel who wrote two letters to Mr Altman and OpenAI outlining what they had done and asking them to describe the exact process they used to create the ‘Sky’ voice,” she added.

OpenAI denied claims that it intentionally imitated Johansson’s voice for its new ChatGPT feature, but the company removed Sky’s voice after Johansson threatened legal action.

“We believe AI voices should not intentionally mimic a celebrity’s distinctive voice – Sky’s voice is not an imitation of Scarlett Johansson, but belongs to another professional actress using her own natural voice,” the company wrote in a blog post. “To protect their privacy, we cannot share the names of our voice artists.”