Is Meta Bringing Celebrity-Voiced Digital Assistants And Chatbots?
Facebook parent Meta is developing an advanced AI assistant that could enable users to interact with virtual versions of celebrities, the media has reported.
Facebook parent Meta is developing an advanced AI assistant that could enable users to interact with virtual versions of celebrities. According to recent reports from new agency Bloomberg and The New York Times (NYT), the company is in discussions with various Hollywood stars and their agencies about participating in AI projects. Some of the actors mentioned in these talks include Awkwafina, Judi Dench, and Keegan-Michael Key.
The company is reportedly aiming to finalise these agreements before its Connect conference in September, where it is expected to unveil several new AI products. Interestingly, this news comes as Meta has reportedly discontinued a previous celebrity chatbot project that was introduced at last year's conference, which featured 28 AI characters voiced by celebrities such as Snoop Dogg, Paris Hilton, and Kendall Jenner.
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The proposed AI assistant, tentatively named MetaAI, is intended to function similarly to existing digital assistants like Siri and Google Assistant. Meta's plan involves recording the celebrities' voices and obtaining broad rights to use them across its platforms, including Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp, and even its Ray-Ban smart glasses.
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Negotiations between Meta and the actors have been complex, with both parties struggling to agree on usage terms. Current discussions are focusing on implementing time limits for the use of recorded voices, with the possibility of contract renewals or extensions, the reports added.
While actors' representatives are pushing for more restrictive usage limits, SAG-AFTRA, the actors' union, has reportedly reached an agreement with Meta on certain terms. This follows the union's recent efforts to protect actors from potential job losses due to AI, which were a key issue during last year's strike. The agreed-upon terms require companies to compensate actors and obtain their consent before using AI-generated likenesses.
If Meta successfully secures deals with the celebrities, it could involve substantial payouts, potentially reaching millions of dollars in fees for each actor involved.
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