Horizon Star Addresses AI Aloy Concerns Amid Voice Actor Strike

Ashly Burch, the acclaimed voice actress behind Horizon's Aloy, has publicly responded to last week's leaked video featuring an AI-generated version of her character. The Horizon performer used the incident to highlight key concerns of the ongoing voice actors' strike regarding artificial intelligence protections.

Sony's AI Demonstration Draws Attention

A now-deleted internal Sony video showcased conversational AI technology using Aloy's likeness with robotic text-to-speech vocals and unnatural facial animations. While Sony hasn't commented officially, the demonstration showed SIE engineering director Sharhoebardajal interacting with the synthetic character.

Assurances from Guerrilla Games

Burch confirmed that Horizon developer Guerrilla contacted her to clarify that:

• The tech demo wasn't part of active development
• No performance data (voice or facial) was used from her work
• The company maintains full ownership of the Aloy character

The actress expressed deep concerns about the implications for performance artistry in gaming if proper protections aren't established. "It makes me so sad it hurts my heart," Burch shared in an emotional TikTok response, acknowledging this doesn't currently affect Horizon projects but raises industry-wide issues.

Core Strike Demands

Burch outlined three key protections SAG-AFTRA is negotiating for:

1. Prior consent for any AI replicas
2. Fair compensation for digital likeness usage
3. Full transparency about AI implementations

The performer emphasized she's not targeting specific companies but fighting for fundamental industry standards. Temporary union contracts currently exist that could provide these safeguards immediately, she noted.

Industry-Wide Impact

The voice actor strike has already affected several major titles:

• Destiny 2 and WoW reportedly feature unvoiced NPCs
• Call of Duty recast key Black Ops 6 roles
• Riot Games faced allegations of strike circumvention

PlayStation Productions' Asad Qizilbash recently defended AI's potential for personalization, particularly for Gen Z audiences. However, experimental AI-only game projects have previously failed, with Keywords Studios acknowledging technology can't replace human talent.

The debate continues as developers increasingly implement generative AI tools while actors seek protections to preserve their craft in the digital age.