Hi-Rez Studios develops the popular games SMITE and Paladins. Now there were plans to switch to an AI voice output in their own games. However, this did not sit well with the players or the voice actors.
Now the creators of Paladins and Smite, Hi-Rez Studios, have gotten into trouble on social media after a voice actor discovered plans to use AI to clone voice recordings.
Players and voice actors vented their frustrations on Twitter about the company, which then eventually withdrew its plans and announced a change to contracts.
AI Is Supposed to Clone Voices, Players Are Angry
The voice actor Henry Schrader posted on Twitter that the company Hi-Rez Studios allegedly has plans to clone voices. So he writes on Twitter:
For those who do not know yet: Hi-Rez Studios, the creators of Paladins and Smite, have stated that they will use AI to clone voices and have refused to enter into contracts that would protect the actors.
The post by voice actor Henry Schrader garnered so much attention that the president of the studio, Stewart Chisam, presented a modified version of the contract addendum on Twitter.
This smoothed things over for the time being, but players are still upset. And concerns not only involve the game studio but also many other areas of life. AI has been gaining power for months.
Many People Are Afraid of Losing Their Jobs to AI
What Is Behind the Discussion? For months, the functions and capabilities of AI have been discussed. Many are not only impressed by the capabilities, but are also afraid that artificial intelligence could eventually take over jobs.
The angry reaction from voice actors is therefore not surprising. The use of AI would likely mean the end of their work or at least a reduction in their time.
The fear of becoming obsolete had to be experienced firsthand by a woman:
A woman loses her job thanks to ChatGPT, as the AI costs less: ‘I was made redundant’
