Tom Hanks claims an AI version of him was used in a dental plan advert without his consent

Tom Hanks has warned fans to "beware" of a new advert in which he apparently stars.

The Hollywood actor revealed that while the "man" in the ad may look like him, it's all just a trick of artificial intelligence.

Hanks has previously been vocal with his concerns about AI and how it might make use of famous figures.

Now, it seems his concerns were valid.

In a post to Instagram, Hank shared a screenshot of the ad, with overlaid text reading: “BEWARE!! There’s a video out there promoting some dental plan with an AI version of me. I have nothing to do with it.”

It comes amid the ongoing strikes in Hollywood in which both actors and writers have expressed concerns about AI and its potential impact on their jobs.

Speaking on British comedian Adam Buxton’s podcast, recorded on 18 April, days before the Hollywood writers’ strike began, Hanks discussed the use of AI in the industry.

“We saw this coming. We saw that there was going to be this ability to take zeros and ones inside a computer and turn it into a face and a character," he explained. "Now that has only grown a billionfold since then, and we see it everywhere.

“I can tell you that there [are] discussions going on in all of the guilds, all of the agencies, and all of the legal firms to come up with the legal ramifications of my face and my voice – and everybody else’s – being our intellectual property.

“Right now if I wanted to, I could get together and pitch a series of seven movies that would star me in them in which I would be 32 years old from now until kingdom come. Anybody can now recreate themselves at any age they are by way of AI or deepfake technology.”

He added that he was concerned his likeness could be used in the future after he’s gone.

Hanks said: “I could be hit by a bus tomorrow, and that’s it, but performances can go on and on and on and on. And outside of the understanding that it’s been done with AI or deepfake, there’ll be nothing to tell you that it’s not me and me alone.

“And it’s going to have some degree of lifelike quality. That’s certainly an artistic challenge, but it’s also a legal one.”

The US writers’ strike ended last week after five months, following an agreement being reached between The Writers Guild of America and the major Hollywood studios. However, the actors’ strike remains ongoing.

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