Matthew McConaughey is seeking protection from unauthorised by artificial intelligence platforms.
The actor has filed video and audio recordings of his image and voice with the United States Patent and Trademark Office in a bid to protect them from such unauthorised use. The recordings were registered by the commercial arm of the non-profit Just Keep Livin' Foundation, which was set up by McConaughey and his wife Camila.
This comes amid growing concerns regarding AI generated impersonation and deepfakes across the entertainment industry, with several US states adopting US states adopting legislation which serves as consumer protection against certain AI systems.
Most of this applies to the malicious use or commercial purposes.
In March 2024, Tennessee's Ensuring Likeness Voice and Image Security (ELVIS) Act was signed into law, allowing more targeted protections for artists against AI generated cloning or impersonation.
Regarding McConaughey, his attorney Kevin Yorn has said that the aim of this was "to make sure that our clients have the same kind of protections that their businesses have".
Yorn also that it was about ensuring clients could "capture some of the value", which was created by the technology using their voice and likeness.
McConaughey is the latest celebrity to speak out against unauthorised use of the technology, with Scarlett Johansson's representatives having sought legal action after and online advert for an AI app used footage of her and an AI generated imitation in 2023.
McConaughey had previously used the technology on his own terms, having joined forces with AI audio company, ElevenLabs to produce a Spanish language audio version of his newsletter using a synthetic of his voice, with permission and has invested in the firm.
Back in 2023, The Grammy Awards confirmed that music which was solely created by AI would not be allowed to receive a nomination.
This was confirmed by the Recording Academy, which has stated that while artists can use it as an aid, the human contribution must be the most significant part.
According to a description of this measure means that, “Only human creators are eligible to be submitted for consideration for, nominated for, or win a Grammy Award. A work that contains no human authorship is not eligible in any Categories".
