Hollywood Actors and Writers Strike Over AI, While Companies Embrace Digital Humans
Hollywood actors and writers are currently on strike, expressing deep concern over the impact of generative artificial intelligence (AI) on their industry and job security. Fran Drescher, president of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) union, recently highlighted the existential threat posed by AI to creative professions. Drescher emphasized the need for contract language that safeguards actors and performers from having their identities and talents exploited without consent and fair compensation.
Despite the strike, several high-flying startups in the generative AI video space have a different perspective. Companies like Synthesia, Hour One, and Soul Machines see AI-generated avatars, or digital humans, as powerful creative tools that can benefit businesses, Hollywood, and celebrities who willingly consent to the use of their AI likenesses.
Natalie Monbiot, head of strategy at Hour One, explained that her company dislikes the term deepfakes because it implies unauthorized use of synthetic media and generative AI. Hour One seeks to provide authorized and legitimate solutions for businesses by utilizing synthetic media, particularly in the form of virtual humans. This technology offers a cost-effective and scalable alternative to traditional video production, catering to the growing demand for video content. Moreover, synthetic media enables businesses to easily produce promotional videos in multiple languages, thereby expanding their reach.
Soul Machines, a Los Angeles-based startup, recently partnered with K-Pop celebrity Mark Tuan to launch Digital Mark – the first AI-generated likeness of a celebrity using integrations like ChatGPT. Digital Mark allows Tuan’s 30 million fans to engage in one-on-one conversations on various topics. As K-Pop’s global fan base continues to expand, Digital Mark will enable Tuan to communicate with fans in multiple languages, starting with English and eventually incorporating Korean and Japanese capabilities.
Jon Starck, Chief Technology Officer at Synthesia, believes AI-powered digital humans hold immense creative and efficiency potential. He stresses that despite video being inherently creative and engaging, the video production process itself lacks creativity. With AI-powered video generation, Starck envisions democratizing storytelling, allowing anyone to become a great storyteller. He even suggests that future films may be entirely created using synthetic data.
Starck has been working on digital humans for two decades, and through Synthesia, his team is tackling the challenge of representing human performance with high fidelity in computer-generated visuals. Their recent AI research project, HumanRF, captures dynamic human motion from multi-view video input, enabling playback from novel viewpoints. To create a high-quality dataset for this project, Synthesia accessed the movements and performances of real actors in a UK studio, including actors who are already available as avatars on the Synthesia platform. Starck emphasizes that Synthesia is not replacing actors in the movie industry but offering a new communication tool for businesses through synthetic video.
In conclusion, while Hollywood actors and writers strike over concerns about the impact of generative AI, companies like Synthesia, Hour One, and Soul Machines see the creative potential of digital humans and synthetic media. These technologies offer efficient and cost-effective solutions for businesses, while celebrities who consent to the use of their AI likenesses find new avenues for engaging with their fans. Although challenges remain, AI-powered digital humans have the potential to revolutionize various industries and empower individuals to become storytellers in their own right.
