OpenAI’s Sora video generator leaked (briefly) in protest from early users
A group of artists invited to test OpenAI’s Sora video generator ahead of its public release leaked access to the AI video model on Hugging Face for a few hours on Tuesday before it was shut down. The “Sora PR Puppets” behind the leak used their access to allow anyone to generate 10-second videos via text message prompts. The group’s point was to push back against OpenAI due to pressure to only talk about the positive aspects of Sora and a lack of compensation for their contributions.
“We entered Sora with the promise to be early testers, red teamers and creative partners. However, we believe we are instead being lured into ‘art washing’ to tell the world that Sora is a useful tool for artists,” the group wrote in a after online. “Hundreds of artists provide unpaid labor through bug testing, feedback, and experimental work for the program for a company valued at $150 billion. While hundreds of artists contribute for free, a select few will be chosen through a competition to have their Sora-created films screened – offering minimal compensation that pales in comparison to the substantial PR and marketing value OpenAI receives.”
For many, the biggest impact of the leak was the chance to play with the very limited Sora model. Until now, only professional filmmakers working with OpenAI had real access. The results shared by those who had the chance to play with Sora before it closed again are impressive, as seen below.
Confirmed: OpenAI Sora really leaked https://t.co/Vh1zzsKgPT pic.twitter.com/mAN1Z4vGsNNovember 26, 2024
Sora protests
The fact that Sora was out in the wild without OpenAI’s permission underlines the difficulties companies trying to collaborate with artists face when it comes to AI. Hollywood writers, artists and animators have all gone on strike, in part over concerns about the use of AI to replace them, and there is every indication that technical improvements will only increase the tension between artists and AI developers. That said, the long delay between Sora’s announcement and a general release suggests that Sora is still far from where OpenAI wants it to be.
While OpenAI is working with filmmakers to demonstrate Sora’s capabilities, no major partnerships have been announced. That’s partly why the protesters leaked the model, to encourage a more open development approach by OpenAI. Whether it will motivate the company to do anything other than kick them out of the program remains to be seen.
“This early access program appears to be less about creative expression and criticism, and more about PR and advertising,” the group wrote. “We are not against the use of AI technology as a tool for the arts (otherwise we probably wouldn’t have been invited to this program). What we disagree with is how this artist program has been rolled out and how the tool is developing in the lead up to a possible public release. We’re sharing this with the world in hopes that OpenAI will become more open, artist-friendly, and support the arts beyond just PR stunts.”