YouTube to Assist Celebrities in Tracking AI Deepfakes Featuring Their Likeness

YouTube is partnering with Creative Artists Agency (CAA) to introduce "likeness management technology" in early 2024, designed to help celebrities and athletes detect and request the removal of unauthorized AI-generated deepfake videos.

A few years ago, a viral deepfake of Tom Cruise demonstrated the potential of this technology, though it required considerable manual editing. Today, advancements in generative AI have made it much easier to create such content, posing new challenges for controlling its use. Notable figures like Joe Rogan have been featured in unauthorized ads, and studies indicate that one in six female members of Congress has been targeted by explicit deepfakes.

YouTube already employs Content ID, a sophisticated copyright protection system that flags unauthorized uploads and enables copyright holders to take appropriate action. CAA is well-suited as a partner due to its existing repository of clients' digital likenesses, including facial features, body images, and voice recordings. Earlier, SAG-AFTRA reached an agreement allowing actors to sell the rights to replicate their voices for advertising purposes.

While some actors are ambivalent about selling their digital likenesses, for many, it represents a valuable revenue stream. In the future, selling one's likeness could become as commonplace as musicians selling their music catalogs.

YouTube intends to gradually extend this likeness management technology to a broader range of creators, providing them with tools to protect their digital identities from misuse in an increasingly complex media landscape.