Paul Stenhouse: The flaws in Google's AI search and OpenAI's voice assistant sounds quite like Scarlett Johansson

Google's big US launch adding AI to their search queries, isn't going so well. 

Perhaps they pushed this a little too fast?

Someone asked, "how many rocks should I eat a day?" and Google told them that UC Berkerley geologists suggested you eat a small rock a day as they contain minerals and vitamins important for digestive health but did also recognize that eating pebbles regularly may mean they get stuck in your intestines.

Why does it suggest this? Because the website ‘The Onion’ had an article about it. Only problem is that The Onion is a satirical newspaper. 

Yes, these responses are labelled as experimental, but maybe it's still too experimental? Another post suggested adding some non-toxic glue to a pizza recipe so the cheese doesn't fall off, and suggested Barack Obama was the first Muslim US president. 
 
Did OpenAI steal Scarlett Johansson's voice? 

She certainly thinks so. Johansson was the voice actor for the virtual assistant in the movie Her, where a man falls in love with her as if she was a real person. Friends and family heard the new Open AI voice assistant named "Sky" and thought it was her. It didn't help that Sam Altman, the OpenAI CEO, tweeted with a link to the product with the caption "Her". 

Johansson says Altman contacted her back in September to ask if she'd be open to her voice being used. She said no. She says two days before the launch, her agent was contacted again asking her to license her voice. Altman says they cast the actors for their new voices before reaching out to Johansson but have removed the voice for now. 

One lawyer cited a case where singer Bette Midler won against Ford, when they used an impersonator in their ad after Midler declined to be involved. 
 

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