David Greene, the former host of NPR's "Morning Edition," has filed a lawsuit alleging that Google used his voice without consent to train its AI audio tool, NotebookLM. Greene told the Washington Post he was alerted to the issue after friends asked if he had licensed his voice to Google. The tool creates podcast-like summaries, and Greene described hearing the AI voice as an "eerie" experience, noting it mimicked his verbal tics.
The lawsuit, filed in California, cites an AI forensic analysis indicating a 53-60% confidence that Greene's voice was used. Greene claims he missed monetization opportunities and was motivated by the unsettling nature of the situation. Google has denied the allegations, stating it hired an actor for the training.
This case joins others involving AI voice mimicry, such as Scarlett Johansson's dispute with OpenAI and an AI-generated Taylor Swift ad campaign.