George Carlin’s estate files suit over AI-generated comedy special

AI

The estate of George Carlin is suing the creators of a YouTube video that mimics the deceased comedian’s voice using generative artificial intelligence.

The lawsuit was filed on Thursday by the estate’s executor, Jerold Hamza, who was Carlin’s manager for 30 years. The development is not unexpected. Carlin’s daughter, Kelly Carlin, told The Daily Beast last month that she was holding talks with attorneys about pursuing legal action over the video.

“The ‘George Carlin’ in that video is not the beautiful human who defined his generation and raised me with love,” Kelly Carlin wrote in a statement obtained by Variety. “It is a poorly executed facsimile cobbled together by unscrupulous individuals to capitalize on the extraordinary goodwill my father established with his adoring fanbase.”

On Jan. 9, a YouTube channel called Dudesy published an hour-long video entitled “George Carlin: I’m Glad I’m Dead.” The video uses an AI that imitates the comedian’s voice and style to discuss current events, as well as to narrate a series of AI-generated images. It has drawn more than 500,000 views to date.

The newly filed lawsuit charges that the YouTube channel’s creators, Will Sasso, Chad Kultgen and their company Dudesy LLC, used Carlin’s copyrighted works without permission to create the fake comedy special. The video’s introduction claims that Dudesy used five decades’ worth of Carlin comedy routines to train an AI model dubbed Dudesy AI. This model, the introduction continues, created the video.

“Defendants therefore admitted that they input thousands of hours of George Carlin’s original, copyrighted routines to an AI machine that Defendants operate to fabricate a semblance of Carlin’s voice and generate a Carlin stand-up comedy routine,” the lawsuit reads.

Besides accusing the plaintiffs of copyright infringement, the complaint also takes issue with the video’s use of Carlin’s voice and likeness. The YouTube thumbnail for the video is an AI-generated image that depicts a comedian with Carlin’s signature ponytail in front of an audience. Additionally, Dudesy published social media posts that used the deceased star’s name and image to promote the show.

The complaint seeks the removal of the AI-generated video along with damages for the alleged copyright infringement. Additionally, it requests an injunction blocking Dudesy from using Carlin’s materials in future AI-generated shows.

Previously, Dudesy published another AI-generated comedy special that used the likeliness of Tom Brady. The company reportedly took down the video after the former NFL star threatened to sue.

Earlier this month, a bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced a bill that would ban unauthorized voice clones and other AI-powered digital replicas. If passed, the legislation will require developers to obtain individuals’ permission before using their likeness in such AI projects. Distributing a digital replica without permission would make the publisher subject to fines as well as potential lawsuits from affected users. 

Image: YouTube