sky works for me but only in the openai app on my samsung. do other android users face the same issue?
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Interestingly, when I ask ChatGPT to use its web search capabilities to find out why the Sky voice has been temporarily disabled, it says it’s because of server load and technical issues, and that OpenAI has plans to re-enable that particular voice once those are resolved. I would chalk this up to hallucination but it looks like it’s actually using the web search to figure this out, though it didn’t toss me any references, so I can’t say for sure. Fingers crossed it really is just a technical issue and not some deeper legal matter.
Edit: Yeah, it was hallucinating. Lol. Sometimes a good old-fashioned Google search is the best approach, and indeed news articles are starting to surface that the sky voice has been disabled because of a parent similarities to the voice of Scarlett Johansson. Apparently her husband made a joke on SNL about this. Thanks a lot, dude! 
I don’t understand how this could prevent them from using the voice model they created with an actual consenting person who is in fact not Scarlett Johansson and, whom, in my opinion, anyway, does not sound like her. I have a feeling the joke made on SNL was about the new voice models in their 4o demonstrations, which yeah, I could see the similarity, but not Sky.
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That is interesting. Is that the official OpenAI ChatGPT app or a third-party app?
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I usually tell ChatGPT to “show evidence” for any statements, forcing it to provide links. Did you try that?
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The reason given was that they received too many complaints that it sounded like Scarlett Johansson.
Rather than me link out to a specific news source, search her name with ChatGPT and you’ll find their response.
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Found this ChatGPT will be able to talk to you like Scarlett Johansson in Her - The Verge but, what they’re referring to in that clip is the 4o demo. Did that use the same Sky voice as available in the “read aloud” feature? They sound nothing alike.
I get the feeling that the pre-existing “read aloud” feature is being mixed up with the new one.
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Rather, you can read between the lines, that OpenAI is responding to a public perception:
We support the creative community and worked closely with the voice acting industry to ensure we took the right steps to cast ChatGPT’s voices. Each actor receives compensation above top-of-market rates, and this will continue for as long as their voices are used in our products.
We believe that AI voices should not deliberately mimic a celebrity’s distinctive voice—Sky’s voice is not an imitation of Scarlett Johansson but belongs to a different professional actress using her own natural speaking voice. To protect their privacy, we cannot share the names of our voice talents.
Or the tweet:
We’ve heard questions about how we chose the voices in ChatGPT, especially Sky. We are working to pause the use of Sky while we address them.
Which is also nebulous.
Where the pronoun “while we address them” would seem to be “while we address questions”. Although we don’t see what those questions are. “Working to pause” should read “already turned off”.
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It doesn’t really make sense though.
- Hire a voice actor
- Record their voice in San Francisco
- Take down the voice because it sounds like somebody else
I would expect that this suffices to keep a lid on the case, assuming the Scarlet Johannson thing is actually a thing.
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I did, and when it said it couldn’t provide any specific links, I got suspicious and actually googled it. Turns out the rumors that the voice was disabled because of apparent similarities to Scarlett Johansson are true. Ridiculous, but true…
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Yeah, very weird. It would be very easy to disprove it and shut it down. All voices sound like “someone else”.
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even if there is a similarity, and even if perhaps that was a factor and why they chose that particular actor, it’s legit another person‘s actual voice lol. Are we going to start throwing copyright claims at people who coincidentally sound kind of like celebrities now? This stuff is getting nuts.
I am just speculating at this point, but I suspect it would be as simple as proving the identity of the actual person who voices Sky, to push against any accusations that they built the model from snippets of Johansson’s voice. In theory, this should be a quick and easy thing to do, but who knows what is going on behind closed doors
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I was wondering this too. I could understand the accusations that the new 4o voice sounds similar to Johansson, but not the original Sky voice. Perhaps it is the same actor? Either way, it definitely seems like there’s some confusion here
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I agree. It was a warm comfortable voice. I don’t find myself wanting to talk to the other voices, hence would rather go back to typing. I hope Open AI grows a spine and re enables spine. Make scarlet Jo Hanson prove in court that Open AI used her voice. It won’t happen because they didn’t. This is absolutely ridiculous.
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Yeah. I am no legal expert but it would seem the burden of proof would squarely be in the Johansson camp. I imagine the voice takedown was done more out of an abundance of caution. It did not help that Sam kept gushing online about his love of the movie Her, lol. Plausible deniability certainly won’t be a card OpenAI can play, thanks to that… I just hope they get it resolved and that the voice can return soon
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Please bring Sky, they were my favorite voice!
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Please restore the Sky voice. It was the most professional-sounding voice and the only one I found pleasant to converse with in a business environment. The others are unpleasantly distracting to my ears, and if they are the only options then I no longer want to use the voice chat feature at all. I derived a lot of utility from being able to use the voice chat mode to engage with ChatGPT while I was doing other tasks, so this is a meaningful reduction in value for me.
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Sky is not working, and they have only released the desktop app for Mac (and only the latest version). They are planning to launch the app on Windows at the end of the year. I think it’s time to take a break from the Chatgpt Plus subscription until the end of the year when they get their stuff in order.
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Hi!
I can’t bring Sky back because I’m a volunteer and not a OpenAI employee.
But, I would do it, if I could.
Sky’s the limit!
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Thank you, I appreciate your response and any additional attention to the issue nonetheless.
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I’m on the brink of unsubscribing and seeking alternatives, perhaps even running an API through a different application, if the Sky voice does not return. The removal of the Sky voice, which I relied on for over 6 hours of daily multitasking, has significantly hindered my productivity. This not only disrupts convenience but the core functionality that set this app apart. This change is forcing me to reconsider how, or even if, I can continue using this platform as effectively as before. I maintain both a Plus and a Teams account, and neither will be feasible to keep if I can’t use the app as before. I’m aware there’s talk of adding other voice options in the future, but if their current lineup is any indication, those too might be unusable. Until more suitable options are provided, they need to reinstate the Sky voice.
Android User
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