Veteran public radio host David Greene has filed a lawsuit against Google, alleging the tech giant used his voice without permission to create one of the synthetic voices for its artificial intelligence tool, NotebookLM. The legal action, lodged in Santa Clara County, California, brings to the forefront a growing conflict between creators and AI developers over the rights to personal likeness.
Key Takeaways
- Prominent radio host David Greene is suing Google, claiming its NotebookLM AI tool replicates his voice.
- The lawsuit alleges Google created the synthetic voice without consent or compensation, violating his rights.
- Google has denied the allegations, stating the voice was created using a paid professional actor.
- The case highlights a critical legal gray area concerning AI, voice cloning, and the right of publicity for public figures.
A Voice Too Familiar
David Greene, whose voice was a daily presence for millions of listeners on NPR's "Morning Edition" from 2012 to 2020, first learned of the issue in the fall of 2024. A former colleague contacted him, questioning if he had licensed his voice to Google for its new AI-powered podcasting feature.
Upon listening to NotebookLM's male co-host, Greene said he was "completely freaked out." He described the experience as eerie, noting that the AI's cadence, intonation, and even verbal tics like "uhhs" and "likes" were uncannily similar to his own distinctive speaking style. His wife and numerous friends and colleagues who reached out also recognized the similarity.
Greene's lawsuit contends that Google misappropriated his voice, which he considers his most vital professional asset, to build a commercial product. The issue is not just financial, but deeply personal. "My voice is, like, the most important part of who I am," Greene stated.
What is Google NotebookLM?
NotebookLM is an AI-powered research and writing assistant from Google. Its "Audio Overviews" feature, released in 2024, can summarize long documents and present the information as a conversational podcast between two AI hosts. The feature gained popularity, and Spotify even incorporated it into its annual "Wrapped" campaign in December 2024.
Google's Defense and the Evidence
Google has firmly rejected the claims. In a statement, company spokesperson José Castañeda called the allegations "baseless." He clarified the company's position on the matter: "The sound of the male voice in NotebookLM’s Audio Overviews is based on a paid professional actor Google hired."
However, Greene's legal team, from the firm Boies Schiller Flexner, believes the audio speaks for itself. The lawsuit includes findings from an unnamed AI forensics firm that analyzed Greene's voice against the AI's. According to the complaint, the analysis returned a confidence rating between 53 and 60 percent that Greene's voice was used in training the AI model, a figure the firm considers "relatively high" for this type of comparison.
Mike Pesca, a podcast host and former colleague of Greene's at NPR, said he immediately identified the voice as Greene's. "I was immediately like, ‘That’s David Greene,’" Pesca recalled, adding that he initially assumed Greene had been compensated for its use.
A Landmark Case for AI and Creator Rights
This lawsuit is not happening in a vacuum. It is the latest in a series of high-profile disputes challenging how AI companies use existing data—from text and images to voices—to train their models. The case echoes a 1988 lawsuit where singer Bette Midler successfully sued Ford Motor Company for using a sound-alike in a commercial.
The Bette Midler Precedent
In 1988, the court ruled in favor of Bette Midler after Ford used a singer who imitated her unique voice for an ad campaign. The case established that a celebrity's voice is a distinctive part of their identity and cannot be imitated for commercial purposes without permission, a principle known as the "right of publicity."
Legal experts suggest Greene's case may hinge on similar principles. James Grimmelmann, a law professor at Cornell University, explained that the court will need to determine how closely an AI voice must resemble a person's to be considered an infringement. Another key factor will be whether Greene's voice is famous enough for the public to associate it with him, potentially harming his reputation or future earning opportunities.
"For something that sounds like me to be used in service of that was really troubling," Greene said, referencing reports that the tool could be used to lend credibility to conspiracy theories and misinformation.
The Human Element of a Digital Voice
For Greene, the journey to developing his voice was a lifelong pursuit. From mimicking baseball announcers as a child to honing a conversational, trustworthy tone at NPR, his voice became his signature. During his time hosting "Morning Edition," he reached an estimated 13 million weekly listeners, making his voice one of the most recognizable in American radio.
He now hosts KCRW's "Left, Right & Center," where he moderates discussions between opposing political viewpoints. Greene emphasized his belief in the power of conversation to bridge divides, a mission he feels is undermined by the impersonal and potentially harmful application of a voice that sounds like his.
While Greene says he is not an "anti-AI activist," he believes companies like Google have a responsibility to seek permission before using what makes a person unique. The outcome of this case could set a significant precedent for how the law protects an individual's identity in the rapidly advancing age of artificial intelligence.