Journalists Sue Google Over Unauthorized Voice AI Training
Google faces a federal lawsuit from award-winning journalists and podcasters who claim the company scraped their voice recordings without permission to train AI systems including Google Assistant and Gemini Live.
The proposed class action, filed Monday in Illinois federal court, names Chicago journalist Carol Marin and Pulitzer Prize winners Yohance Lacour and Alison Flowers as plaintiffs. They allege Google misused thousands of hours of human speech to power voice AI systems that replicate human voices.
The plaintiffs claim Google violated their publicity and biometric data privacy rights under Illinois law. They are seeking unspecified monetary damages.
How Google Allegedly Sourced the Recordings
According to the lawsuit, Google scraped the internet for voice recordings that matched specific criteria. The company's own documentation identifies optimal training audio as "long-form, single-speaker, studio-quality, professionally produced" - a profile the plaintiffs' recordings fit.
The recordings came from podcasts, audiobooks, and other professional audio content. Speakers were never asked for permission.
Part of a Broader Pattern
This lawsuit is one of dozens filed against tech companies for using copyrighted work to train AI systems without authorization. Former NPR host David Greene sued Google separately in California in January over alleged voice misuse. A group of voice actors brought similar claims against AI voiceover startup Lovo in an ongoing New York case.
The case mirrors broader litigation from authors and news outlets challenging whether companies can legally use published work to train AI models.
What's at Stake for Writers
The lawsuit raises questions about voice modulation technology and how text-to-speech systems are trained. For journalists and content creators, it centers on whether companies can extract and repurpose their work without consent or compensation.
Case details: Marin v. Alphabet Inc, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, No. 1:26-cv-05436.
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