The issue of AI is also affecting other creative professionals, with concerns over copyright and the use of digital likenesses. SAG-AFTRA negotiators claim studios proposed scanning actors' likenesses for perpetual use without consent or compensation, a claim denied by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. The strike is seen as a labor issue that could influence the debate on AI technology globally, with implications for industries such as journalism and outsourced businesses like call centers.
Key takeaways:
- Hollywood workers, including 11,500 members of the Writers Guild of America, are striking against the threat of artificial intelligence (AI) taking over their jobs, demanding fair wages, better residuals, and assurance that AI will not replace them as screenwriters.
- Actors are also striking to protect their likenesses, with SAG-AFTRA negotiators claiming that studios proposed scanning actors' likenesses and using that information indefinitely.
- There are concerns about the use of AI in other industries, such as call centers in the Philippines and training AI in Kenya, where workers are paid less than $2 an hour to train the technology against producing violent, racist, toxic, and sexist content.
- Despite the increasing use of AI, there is belief that humans will ultimately prevail, as AI can only imitate what has already been done and cannot produce fresh, new content based on new reporting.