YouTube is helping high-profile actors and athletes monetize their AI likenesses

YouTube is teaming up with one of the world's largest talent agencies, CAA, to help its high-profile actors and athletes monitor their AI likenesses. "Through this collaboration, several of the world’s most influential figures will have access to early-stage technology designed to identify and manage AI-generated content that features their likeness, including their face, on YouTube at scale," YouTube wrote on its official blog.

The video platform plans to begin testing its "likeness management technology" with unnamed award-winning actors and top NBA and NFL athletes, all clients of CAA (Creative Artists Agency). The system will surface AI-generated content that depicts their likeness and provide easy access to submit requests for removal through its privacy-complaint process. 

Through CAA and its influential client list, YouTube says it will gain insight before releasing it more widely to other creators and artists. Down the road, it will announce further testing for top YouTube creators, creative professionals and other talent agencies. 

CAA is an ideal first partner to test its likeness management tech, YouTube wrote. The agency has been on the forefront of AI and digital rights, via its CAAvault talent-focused serivce that scans, captures and securely stores clients' digital likeness including face, body and voice. 

Technology platforms like YouTube have been at odds with creators over the use of AI, particularly when it comes to training large language models (LLMs) on copyrighted text, artworks and the likenesses of famous people. The issue is particularly contentious in Hollywood; some stars have agreed to let AI replicate their voices under license, but many have railed against its use. 

Last week in a podcast interview with Armchair Expert, Friends actor Lisa Kudrow called the use of digital versions of Tom Hanks and Robin Wright in the film Here an "endorsement" of AI. "What will there be left for, forget actors, but what about up-and-coming actors? They’ll just be licensing and recycling. What work will there be for human beings?”

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