OpenAI has announced that they will pause the use of their new ChatGPT voice, Sky, after receiving backlash from Hollywood actress Scarlett Johansson for its striking resemblance to her own voice.

The tech giant unveiled their new GPT-4.0 model last week, highlighting the human-like qualities of the app’s various voice options.

In a recent statement, the actress explained that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman approached her nine months ago requesting that she voice for their new chatbot system. “He felt that by my voicing the system, I could bridge the gap between tech companies and creatives and help consumers to feel comfortable with the seismic shift concerning humans and AI,” the actress wrote. “He said he felt that my voice would be comforting to people. After much consideration and for personal reasons, I declined the offer.”

However, in the time since the model’s release, the internet has drawn numerous comparisons between the voice of Sky and Johansson’s famously portrayed AI companion character from Spike Jonze 2013 film Her, leaving the actress “shocked” and “angered.”

Johansson went on to describe the voice as “so eerily similar to mine that my closest friends and news outlets could not tell the difference.”

The AI company removed the voice option from their platform earlier this week after widespread fallout over the flirtatious voice.

"We've heard questions about how we chose the voices in ChatGPT, especially Sky,” OpenAI wrote in a social media post. “We are working to pause the use of Sky while we address them."

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.

Read more about how we chose these voices: https://t.co/R8wwZjU36L

— OpenAI (@OpenAI) May 20, 2024

"We believe that AI voices should not deliberately mimic a celebrity's distinctive voice,” they continued in an accompanying blog post. “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."