On February 2nd, the American singer and actress Lainey Wilson from the series ‘Yellowstone‘ went to court to testify against the use of her voice by an AI after being a victim of the new technologies that use artists’ voices for other content without their consent.
The singer confessed his feelings against this practice by saying, “how much of a gut punch it is to have your name, your likeness or your voice ripped from you” to be used in some other content and context that you would never agree with.
Lainey Wilson testifies at a House Judiciary field hearing on how AI fraud has impacted her:
“I do not have to tell you how much of a gut punch it is to have your name, your likeness, or your voice … used in ways that you could never imagine. … It is wrong, plain and simple.” pic.twitter.com/oNKHKloEoT
— The Recount (@therecount) February 2, 2024
Wilson talked about the use of her image to promote weight-loss gummies, alleging that by having young fans, she would never do that as she “encourages them to feel comfortable in their own skin“, but by using her image and voice, people usually believe it.
Despite Lainey Wilson’s claim that she is excited for the good ways AI can be used to help people, she thinks the decision over her voice and image should be something she can control, and she is “nervous about how it (AI) can be used to take personal rights“.
WATCH: Lainey Wilson responds to @RepFitzgerald's line of questioning by detailing how AI is used to sell products without her permission pic.twitter.com/FQ5DkToeJN
— House Judiciary GOP 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@JudiciaryGOP) February 2, 2024
Wilson states that the most important thing about this problem is that, knowing that some artists agree and others do not, “it should be their choice and not a choice that an AI cloning company gets to make for them“, as this is a violation of their personal rights.
Among the singer’s praising declarations, she also makes another important point, which is that this act could “put at risk everything that they (artists) have worked so hard to accomplish“, and even when it is from a company or person who has not invested in them or partnered with them in some way.
