New York Governor Signs AI Protection Bills as SAG-AFTRA Executives Tout Gains for Performers

As seen in The Hollywood Reporter:

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed two bills Thursday to boost AI transparency in the film industry.

The first requires entities who produce or create an advertisement to disclose whether the ad includes AI-generated synthetic performers, while the second requires consent from heirs or executors if a company wishes to use the name, image, or likeness of an individual for commercial purposes after their death. Gov. Kathy Hochul described these as “first in the nation” policies and committed to continuing protecting performers. 

“We will have responsible AI policies in the state of New York,” Hochul said at a press conference at the SAG-AFTRA offices in New York City Thursday.

“It’s a time where we do want to embrace innovation,” she continued. “But not to the detriment of people. That has to be the dividing line right there.” She went on to call the use of AI actors in advertisements “fake entertainment.”

The Governor hosted a signing at the SAG-AFTRA offices in New York, surrounded by union executives as well as former president Fran Drescher, national executive director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, Linda Powell, executive vice president of SAG-AFTRA.

The bill signing came the same day Disney announced a partnership with OpenAI in which users of its AI video creation platform Sora will be able to create clips using iconic characters from Marvel, Pixar and Star Wars franchises. Disney CEO Bob Iger said Thursday that the Sora deal will not include voices, potentially delaying a fight over using actor’s voices. The news loomed large in the room, with Chief Labor Policy Officer Rebecca Damon pointing to the announcement and saying the union is thinking about AI every day.