Over 11,500 creative professionals, including celebrities like Julianne Moore, James Patterson, and Thom Yorke, have signed an open letter calling for the prohibition of using human art to train artificial intelligence without permission. The lack of federal regulation around generative AI has led to confusion and criticism as artists and companies accuse tech giants of scraping their work without consent. Ed Newton-Rex, a composer and founder of Fairly Trained, notes that many generative AI companies train on creators’ work without permission, leading to exploitation of artists’ work.
The letter has gained hundreds more signatories, including actress Fran Drescher and major publishing houses and music labels, in the hours since it was published. The potential for generative AI to replace human labor is a concern for actors and performers in the industry. Legal battles have arisen between publishers and AI companies over copyright infringement, with some striking content deals instead. Record labels have also taken AI music-making companies to court for allegedly training models on copyrighted sound recordings without consent.
The use of AI tools to generate realistic media has raised ethical questions for artists, who fear their work and compensation could be undermined by these technologies. Instances of celebrities’ likenesses being replicated without permission, such as in AI-generated advertisements, have sparked legal action. While comprehensive legislation for regulating AI development does not yet exist in the United States, some states have introduced bills addressing deepfakes and unauthorized use of digital likenesses. California recently passed laws aimed at protecting actors and performers from such unauthorized use.
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