An increasing number of cases are forcing voice actors to enter into contracts that ``allow AI to generate synthesized voices from recorded voices'', voice actors and unions voice opposition.

Voice actors who provide voices for games and anime are increasingly being asked to sign contracts that include a clause that ``authorizes AI to generate synthetic voices that reproduce their own voices.'' The union is suing on the IT news site Motherboard. Voice actors are concerned that the proliferation of such contracts could cause major damage to the voice acting industry as a whole.

'Disrespectful to the Craft:' Actors Say They're Being Asked to Sign Away Their Voice to AI
https://www.vice.com/en/article/5d37za/voice-actors-sign-away-rights-to-artificial-intelligence

The technology to reproduce voices using AI is rapidly progressing, and it is now possible for individuals to easily reproduce voices using AI trained on their own voice data. In fact, on the online bulletin board 4chan, there have been reports of cases of abuse, such as having an AI that has learned Emma Watson's voice read out ``Mein Kampf.''

The latest tool to generate cloned voices using AI is being misused by 4chan people, such as ``reading out ``Mein Kampf'' with Emma Watson's voice'' - GIGAZINE

Tim Friedlander, founder and president of the National Voice Actors Association (NAVA), says there is a growing trend to include ``contract clauses that give producers the right to synthesize voice actors' voices'' in contracts.

Friendlander says, 'Many voice actors may sign contracts without realizing that there is a clause in the contract that allows synthetic voices, and without additional compensation or approval for the voice actor. Clauses have already been confirmed that allow the use of recorded voices for AI training. There are also voice actors who are told that they will not be given work unless they agree to such a contract.'

Fryda Wolffe, a voice actor who is active mainly in games, told Motherboard, ``Game developers and animation studios have AI memorize my voice and use the voice generated from that to create ``similar products'' of me. 'They will not compensate me for using synthesized voices, and they will not notify my agency that they have used synthetic voices, and they may extract more performance from me.' .

Sarah Elmaleh, a voice actor and director, also said, ``What happens if you happily prepare for a role, but when you enter the booth, you don't agree with certain lines written in the script and clearly show displeasure?'' What if the producer doesn't understand or accept my discomfort? Normally, we can refuse to read out the line so that it won't be used, but... , AI-based synthesis technology completely avoids that.'

According to Friendlander, there are many people in America who work as voice actors as part-time jobs. There are many people who work other jobs from 9:00 to 17:00 and perform voice acting work at other times, and if voice actors' work is taken over by AI synthesized voices, the entire voice acting industry will be seriously damaged. I'm worried about that.

Meanwhile, Mati Staniszewski, co-founder of ElevenLabs , which develops the AI voice software that was also exploited on 4chan, told Motherboard, ``With the advent of AI, voice actors will no longer be limited in the number of recording sessions they can participate in.'' voice actors themselves are aware of this potential, and are already using a number of Ten people have contacted us saying they are interested in working with us.'

However, Wolff said of Staniszewski's comments, ``Voice actors aren't looking to secure licensing or extra compensation. It clearly shows that they have no understanding of how well musicians are doing because music streaming licenses have changed the way musicians receive additional compensation and royalties. All you have to do is ask the musicians themselves if they are doing so.''

Friendlander said, 'NAVA is not anti-synthetic voice or anti-AI. We are professional voice actors. We want voice actors to be actively and equally involved in the growth of the industry and to be compensated fairly for their work and talent. I want to make sure that I don't lose my skills or abilities.'

SungWon Cho, a voice actor who goes by the stage name ProZD, said, ``I am completely against synthetic voices.Synthesizing voices takes the soul and spontaneity out of real acting. I can only hope that it will disappear completely, but at least voice actors should be given the option of not using their recorded voices in AI.''