The estate of George Carlin has filed a lawsuit against Dudesy, the media company behind the recently 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 Comedy style supposedly generated by a chatbot trained on Carlin's own material.
The plaintiff filed a motion Thursday in California federal court for an order to immediately dismiss the special lawsuit, plus unspecified damages. The lawsuit alleges that the company violated copyright by using Carlin's materials to train the chatbot without obtaining permission or license.
At the beginning of the special, which currently remains available to watch on YouTube, an approximation of Carlin's voice can be heard stating that she “listened to all of George Carlin's material and did my best to reproduce his voice, his rhythm and “as well as the topic I think he would have been interested in today.” The lawsuit alleges that the chatbot created unauthorized copies of Carlin's copyrighted work in this way. The plaintiff also claims the content damages the late comedian's reputation and objects to a replica of Carlin's voice being used to promote the video, calling the special “a casual theft of the work of a great American artist.”
Named as defendants are Dudesy podcast hosts Will Sasso and Chad Kultgen, as well as twenty John Does – five creators associated with the AI program and 15 people associated with the “creation, production and sponsorship” of the special keep in touch.
“My father was a legendary comedian and a once-in-a-lifetime talent whose legacy is the work he left behind – his actual performances, albums and books. I understand and share the desire for more George Carlin. I also want to spend more time with my father. But to claim he was 'resurrected with AI' is ridiculous,” the comedian's daughter Kelly Carlin wrote in a statement announcing the lawsuit. “The 'George Carlin' in this video is not the beautiful person who shaped his generation and raised me with love. It is a poorly executed facsimile cobbled together by unscrupulous individuals to capitalize on the extraordinary goodwill my father has built among his adoring fan base.”
The case represents one of the first major cases in which an artist or their estate takes legal action against the creators of an AI-generated game – a growing problem across the entertainment industry.
“AI is perhaps the most important technology invented in generations and therefore requires a high degree of control and restraint to ensure that it is not misused,” said attorney Josh Schiller of Boies Schiller Flexner, LLP in a statement. “We risk it becoming a tool that allows malicious actors to replace creative expression, exploit creators’ pre-existing work, and get rich at the expense of others.” This case isn’t just about AI, it is about the people who use AI to break the law, violate intellectual property rights and disrespect common decency.”