The estate had accused two podcast hosts of violating its copyrights by utilizing an A.I. algorithm trained on five decades of George Carlin’s material.
A settlement was reached between George Carlin’s estate and the podcast creators, Will Sasso and Chad Kultgen, who had claimed to use artificial intelligence to mimic Mr. Carlin for a comedy special.
Under the terms of the agreement, Sasso and Kultgen agreed to permanently delete the comedy special and refrain from reuploading it on any platform without the estate’s consent. Additionally, they are prohibited from utilizing Mr. Carlin’s voice, image, or likeness without approval from the estate, as per court documents.
The specifics of the settlement, including any financial compensation, were not disclosed by Josh Schiller, the estate’s attorney, citing confidentiality.
The lawsuit, initiated by Mr. Carlin’s estate in January, alleged that the hosts of the podcast “Dudesy” infringed on the estate’s copyrights by training an A.I. on Carlin’s extensive body of work for the special “George Carlin: I’m Glad I’m Dead,” which was shared on YouTube. It also claimed unauthorized use of Carlin’s name and likeness.
In response to the settlement, Mr. Schiller emphasized the importance of addressing the risks associated with A.I. technologies, highlighting the potential for misuse in creating fake content.
Kelly Carlin, George Carlin’s daughter, expressed satisfaction with the swift resolution of the case and underscored the significance of establishing safeguards against the misuse of A.I. tools.
The controversial comedy special, “George Carlin: I’m Glad I’m Dead,” featured an A.I. character named Dudesy impersonating Carlin, discussing various contemporary issues in a manner reminiscent of Carlin’s style.
Notably, a spokesperson for Will Sasso clarified in January that Dudesy was a fictional character conceived by the hosts and not an actual artificial intelligence entity.
