David Greene Sues Google Over AI Podcast Voice Resemblance
David Greene, the familiar voice of NPR’s “Morning Edition,” has taken legal action against Google, claiming that the male podcast voice featured in the company’s NotebookLM tool bears a striking resemblance to him, as reported by The Washington Post.
Upon receiving numerous messages from friends, family, and colleagues pointing out the likeness, Greene grew convinced that the AI voice was mimicking his speech patterns, intonation, and even his use of filler words such as “uh.”
Expressing the significance of his voice, Greene, who now hosts the KCRW program “Left, Right, & Center,” remarked, “My voice is, like, the most important part of who I am.”
Google’s NotebookLM platform offers various functionalities, including the ability to create podcasts with AI hosts. A spokesperson for the company clarified to the Post that the voice utilized in this tool is not based on Greene: “The male voice heard in NotebookLM’s Audio Overviews is actually that of a professional actor hired by Google.”
Instances of AI voices resembling real individuals have led to controversy in the past. Notably, OpenAI removed a ChatGPT voice following complaints from actress Scarlett Johansson, who felt it closely imitated her own voice.
