Actor Tom Hanks has issued a warning to fans after an AI-generated video of him promoting a dental plan began circulating online.
The online advertisement used a digital version of the Oscar-winning actor’s face and voice to promote dental insurance.
“BEWARE!!” Hanks wrote over a screenshot of the video.
“There’s a video out there promoting some dental plan with an AI version of me. I have nothing to do with it.”
Hanks has previously been a vocal critic of artificial intelligence and deepfake technology, saying during a podcast interview in May he could be “32 years old from now until kingdom come”.
“Anybody can now recreate themselves at any age they are, by way of AI or deep fake technology,” he told The Adam Buxton Podcast.
“I could be hit by a bus tomorrow and that’s it. But my performances can go on and on and on.
“Outside of the understanding that it’s been done by AI or deep fake, there will be nothing to tell you that it’s not me.”
‘Can’t turn a blind eye’: Landmark anti-AI celeb lawsuit
The use of artificial intelligence and celebrity faces has been a key part of negotiations in the ongoing Hollywood strikes.
Concern over use of their own faces and voices has even sparked some actors to take legal action, including Indian actor Anil Kapoor.
Kapoor, who is best known for his role in 2008’s Slumdog Millionaire, last month won a landmark court case against unauthorised AI-generated images of himself.
A Delhi court has now prohibited “misusing his personality attributes without his permission in any manner”, with a judge in the case saying courts “can’t turn a blind eye to such misuse”.
The 66-year-old actor filed the lawsuit after discovering deepfake content of himself and his characters online.
“It’s not only for me,” he told Variety after the ruling.
“Today I’m there to protect myself, but when I’m not there, the family should have the right to protect my (personality) and gain from it in future.
“Because of the way technology and the AI technology […] which can completely take advantage of and be misused commercially, as well as where my image, voice, morphing, GIFs and deep fakes are concerned, I can straight away, if that happens, send a court order and injunction and they have to pull it down.”
In April, a German tabloid was threatened with legal action after it used AI to create the “first interview” with former Formula 1 racer Michael Schumacher.
Schumacher suffered a near-fatal brain injury in December 2013. His family has since been fiercely private about his condition.
The magazine did not reveal the quotes had been generated until the end of the article.
A spokesperson for Schumacher’s family said it plans to sue the magazine over the incident.
Fake celebrity scam ads on the rise
Celebrities have increasingly become the target of cybercriminals using AI to make cryptocurrency scam ads, according to an investigation by UK newspaper Evening Standard.
The ads are paid for by their creators to look like they come from certified influencers and organisations.
Among popular targets are adventurer Bear Grylls, former footballer and TV personality Ian Wright and Tesla boss Elon Musk.
Wright, a former Arsenal player, posted on social media in June warning fans of “scams”.
“People think I’ve been arrested,” he said on TikTok. “They’re superimposing me with handcuffs.
“This is a scam, people are scamming you.”
