George Carlin Estate Files Lawsuit Against Group Behind AI-Generated Stand-Up Special: ‘A Casual Theft of a Great American Artist’s Work’
variety.comJ. Kim Murphy The George Carlin estate has filed a lawsuit against Dudesy, the media company behind the recent viral AI-generated hour-long comedy special “George Carlin: I’m Glad I’m Dead,” which featured an approximation of the late comedian’s voice and comedy style that was allegedly generated by a chatbot trained by Carlin’s own material.
Filed in California federal court on Thursday, the plaintiff is seeking a court order for an immediate removal of the special, plus an unspecified amount in damages.
The lawsuit alleges that the company infringed on copyright by using Carlin’s materials to train the chatbot without seeking permission or licensing.
At the start of the special, which remains available to watch on YouTube at this time, an approximation of Carlin’s voice is heard, stating that it “listened to all of George Carlin’s 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 suit alleges that, by doing so, the chatbot created unauthorized copies of Carlin’s copyrighted work.
Read more on variety.com
