Even though the app is currently only available in North America and only for invited users, it quickly shot to the top of the US App Store. Sora's popularity is fueled by a wave of videos on social media, including those that recreate images of deceased artists such as Michael Jackson and Tupac Shakur. Robin Williams' daughter, Zelda Williams, asked users to “stop sending her videos of her father,” which the media noted was linked to Sora's popularity.
Spokesman OpenAI in an interview with the website Axios emphasized that “there is a strong need for freedom of speech” in the context of the possibility of presenting historical figures. However, he added that images of recently deceased public figures may be protectedif authorized persons request their removal. However, he did not specify which means “recently deceased” – he notes BBC.
The Sora app and growing copyright disputes
Videos generated by Sora often contain characters from movies, TV series and video games. In one of the popular deepfakes OpenAI CEO Sam Altman appears next to the Pokemon and jokes: “I hope Nintendo doesn't sue us“. In another video, he is seen grilling and eating Pikachu.
Although Nintendo has not announced a lawsuit, many companies – including OpenAI – are already filing suit copyright infringement lawsuits. The costs of these disputes can be enormous. For example, a company Anthropic she agreed to pay $1.5 billion as part of a settlement following a class action lawsuit in which she was accused of using other people's work to train AI models.
Altman himself wrote on October 4 that his company “he quickly learns how people use Sora” and “takes into account the views of users, rights holders and other interested parties“. He also announced that OpenAI will introduce a system that allows rights holders to have greater control over character creation and plans revenue sharing model with the creators.
