Current:Home > InvestGeorge Carlin estate settles with podcasters over fake comedy special purportedly generated by AI-InfoLens
George Carlin estate settles with podcasters over fake comedy special purportedly generated by AI
View Date:2024-12-23 15:08:39
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The estate of George Carlin has agreed to a settlement with the media company it sued over a fake hourlong comedy special that purportedly used artificial intelligence to recreate the late standup comic’s style and material.
In the settlement agreement filed with a federal court Monday, and a proposed order from both sides that awaits approval from a judge, the podcast outlet Dudesy agrees to permanently take down the special and to refrain from using Carlin’s image voice or likeness in the future without the express written approval of the estate.
The settlement meets the central demands laid out by the Carlin estate in the lawsuit filed on Jan. 25.
“I am grateful that the defendants acted responsibly by swiftly removing the video they made,” Carlin’s daughter Kelly Carlin said in a statement. “While it is a shame that this happened at all, I hope this case serves as a warning about the dangers posed by AI technologies and the need for appropriate safeguards not just for artists and creatives, but every human on earth.”
George Carlin, among the most influential standup comedians of the 20th century, died in 2008.
In the audio special, titled “George Carlin: I’m Glad I’m Dead,” a synthesis of the comic delivers commentary on current events. A companion Dudesy podcast episode with hosts Will Sasso and Chad Kultgen —- the company and the two men are the defendants in the lawsuit — was released with the men playing clips and commenting on them.
Messages seeking comment from Kultgen and Sasso were not immediately returned.
At the beginning of the special posted on YouTube on Jan. 9, a voiceover identifying itself as the AI engine used by Dudesy says it listened to the comic’s 50 years of material and “did my best to imitate his voice, cadence and attitude as well as the subject matter I think would have interested him today.”
The plaintiffs say if that was in fact how it was created — and some listeners have doubted its stated origins — it meant Carlin’s copyright was violated.
The lawsuit was among the first in what is likely to be an increasing number of major legal moves made to fight the regenerated use of celebrity images and likenesses.
Carlin estate lawyer Joshua Schiller of the firm Boies Schiller Flexner LLP in a statement calls the settlement “a blueprint for resolving similar disputes going forward where an artist or public figure has their rights infringed by AI technology. Our goal was to resolve this case expeditiously and have the offending videos removed from the internet so that we could preserve Mr. Carlin’s legacy and shine a light on the reputational and intellectual property threat caused by this emerging technology.”
The AI issue was a major sticking point in the resolution of last year’s Hollywood writers and actors strikes.
veryGood! (413)
Related
- My Little Pony finally hits the Toy Hall of Fame, alongside Phase 10 and Transformers
- Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut receive proposals for offshore wind projects
- Baltimore Orioles' new owner David Rubenstein approved by MLB, taking over from Angelos family
- YouTuber Ninja Shares Skin Cancer Diagnosis
- Fantasy football waiver wire: 10 players to add for NFL Week 11
- Celeb Trainer Gunnar Peterson Shares 4-Year-Old Daughter's Cancer Diagnosis
- Mega Millions has a winner! Lucky player in New Jersey wins $1.13 billion lottery jackpot
- State budget bill passed by Kentucky Senate would increase support for schools
- Bears fire offensive coordinator Shane Waldron amid stretch of 23 drives without a TD
- Netanyahu cancels delegation to U.S. after it abstains from cease-fire vote at U.N.
Ranking
- Wreck of Navy destroyer USS Edsall known as 'the dancing mouse' found 80 years after sinking
- Texas Rep. Troy Nehls target of investigation by House ethics committee
- What happened to Utah women's basketball team was horrible and also typically American
- Garrison Brown's older brother Hunter breaks silence on death, Meri discusses grief
- Investigators believe Wisconsin kayaker faked his own death before fleeing to eastern Europe
- Garrison Brown's older brother Hunter breaks silence on death, Meri discusses grief
- Massachusetts man gets 40 years in prison for fatal attack on partner on a beach in Maine
- Trader Joe’s upped the price of its bananas for the first time in decades. Here’s why
Recommendation
-
Denver district attorney is investigating the leak of voting passwords in Colorado
-
Louisville finalizing deal to hire College of Charleston's Pat Kelsey as men's basketball coach
-
Dairy Queen announces new 2024 Summer Blizzard Treat Menu: Here's when it'll be available
-
About 2,000 migrants begin a Holy Week walk in southern Mexico to raise awareness of their plight
-
Oil Industry Asks Trump to Repeal Major Climate Policies
-
Vanderpump Rules' Tom Schwartz Reacts to Ex Katie Maloney Hooking Up With His Best Friend
-
Lou Whittaker, among the most famous American mountaineers, has died at age 95
-
2 high school wrestling team members in West Virginia are charged with sexual assault