Neil Elan was recently featured in Entrepreneur’s article, “'People Have the Right to Protect Their Likeness': Hollywood Lawyer Says Scarlett Johansson's OpenAI Controversy Is Only the Beginning.” The feature examines Scarlett Johansson’s recent criticism of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which allegedly released a chatbot with an "eerily similar" voice to her own after the actress denied the request to use her likeness.
While no formal lawsuit has been filed against the artificial intelligence platform, Neil discusses the potential outcome. He explains, "Ultimately it comes down to how similar is the work and what was the process that went into it," also expressing that it is unknown what the exact communication between the parties entailed.
The case highlights concerns surrounding how AI models are trained and broader implications extending to celebrities and non-celebrities alike. He tells Entrepreneur, “So does that mean non-famous creators are out of luck regarding unauthorized use of their voice or likeness? Not exactly, but the commercial image or voice of a non-celebrity person doesn't have the same value as that of a public figure.” He continues to stress that anyone, regardless of celebrity status, still has “the right to protect their likeness."
