OpenAI’s Sora bans Martin Luther King Jr. deepfakes after his family complained

The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, at left, is seen with the Washington Monument in the background during the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Wreath Laying Ceremony in Washington, Monday, Jan. 15, 2024. ( AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

New York — OpenAI announced that it has “paused” users’ ability to generate videos of Martin Luther King Jr. on its artificial intelligence video tool Sora, following backlash over “disrespectful depictions.”

“While there are strong free speech interests in depicting historical figures, OpenAI believes public figures and their families should ultimately have control over how their likeness is used,” the company said in a Thursday statement posted on X. “Authorized representatives or estate owners can request that their likeness not be used in Sora cameos.”

The change comes a few weeks after the launch of Sora 2, which lets users make realistic-looking AI-generated videos using real and historical people. Critics charge that it’s contributing to an era of misinformation and “AI slop” that is blurring the lines between what’s real and what’s fake.

The product has also generated online discussion about ethics around the use of this technology. Some creators were using King’s likeness for inappropriate purposes. Users recently recreated the late actor Robin Williams in AI videos, prompting his daughter Zelda to call them “disturbing.”

OpenAI said it “thanks Dr. Bernice A. King for reaching out on behalf of King, Inc., and John Hope Bryant and the AI Ethics Council for creating space for conversations like this.”

The King Center didn’t immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment.

By Jordan Valinsky, CNN