Hollywood and AI CAN actually play nice

Podcasts everywhere could soon be filled with robot Christopher Walken shucking Athletic Greens.

SAG-AFTRA, aka the screen actors union (160,000+ members), recently announced a partnership with Narrativ, an online marketplace where brands can use AI to create audio advertisements for use on the radio, podcasts, etc.

How it works:

• Actors must give informed consent for Narrativ to recreate their voice on audio ads using AI.
• The actor is then responsible for setting their individual working rate for use of their voice, with union minimums in place to ensure fair compensation. The actor also has to sign off on the product or service being offered, as well as the script.
• Actors have the option to leave the platform at any point. If they choose to leave, Narrativ is obligated to delete their voice replica and any recordings used to create it.

📸 Big picture: The announcement comes nearly a year after the actors’ and writers’ strikes of 2023, which both sought protections from AI taking over jobs in the entertainment industry. This partnership is part of the union’s effort to demonstrate how AI can be “ethically used by putting compensation, informed consent and control in the hands of individual performers.”