Actors vs AI: The battle for creative control — WGA and SAG-AFTRA seek strong AI regulations amidst strike

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Guild of America (WGA) continues its strike, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) has also raised its voice in a fight to protect the future of creative professions against the rise of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in Hollywood. The use of AI technology, which can replicate human faces, voices, and even create images and text, poses an existential threat to actors, writers, and other creatives, leading to demands for strict AI regulations. Fran Drescher, president of SAG-AFTRA, emphasized the urgent need for safeguards in a news conference. She warned that AI presents an imminent danger of replacing human talent and identity, and all actors deserve protection against the exploitation of their skills without consent and fair compensation. The entertainment industry's concerns extend to writers, who have been on strike for over two months, calling for explicit AI regulations to safeguard their works.

Generative AI technology has evolved significantly, creating realistic images and text, with chatbots like ChatGPT gaining popularity in Hollywood. However, such AI tools have limitations, often producing derivative and factually incorrect content when asked to create creatively.

Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, SAG-AFTRA's chief negotiator, expressed concern over the studios' proposals exploiting actors without speaking roles. The debate centers on the ownership and usage of background performers' digital replicas, with the alliance representing Hollywood studios asserting consent and minimum payment requirements.

The Director's Guild of America (DGA), in contrast to WGA