As the number of AI voice tools grows, so does the amount of AI clones of celebrity voices, which are sometimes used in an attempt to scam people. Certainly the use is most often without permission being granted by the person being impersonated.
As with any technology that replicates human likeness, voice cloning comes with several legal concerns. This includes privacy violations. Voice cloning without consent is a clear violation of privacy. Individuals have a right to control how their likeness, including their voice, is used.
The firm SeatPick has recently analysed AI clones data to discover the leading sports stars who have the most AI clones.
The top 10 most AI-cloned sports stars
- Cristiano Ronaldo
- LeBron James
- Patrick Mahomes
- Stephen Curry
- Kobe Bryant
- Neymar
- Lionel Messi
- Tiger Woods
- Tom Brady
- Kylian Mbappe
To gather the data, a seed list of the most popular sports stars was compiled through a variety of reputable articles. Following this, the sounds platform, 101 Soundboards, was utilised to collect data on the number of AI clones created for each of the sports personalities. All sports stars were then ranked in descending order, based on the amount of AI clones generated, to reveal the most AI-cloned ones.
As indicated above, Ronaldo’s voice has been replicated 5,527 times. In comparison, Messi fans may be surprised to learn that their hero ranks seventh with 1,037 AI-replicated sounds – behind not only Neymar (1,214), but also NBA legend, Stephen Curry (1,840).
Coming in second is LeBron James, with a staggering 4,737 AI sounds created using the basketball player’s voice. This is almost 20 times more than competitive counterpart, Michael Jordan with 239 sounds.
Right behind, in third is Kansas City Chiefs quarterback, Patrick Mahomes with 3,180 AI-replicated sounds, while Tom Brady also makes the top 10 with 892 sounds.
Fourth on the list is another American basketball player, Stephen Curry, with 1,840 AI clones (2,897 less than LeBron James). His $102 million earnings made him the ninth highest paid athlete in 2024 and the third highest paid basketball player, coming after LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Football stars have the most cloned voices
Football (soccer) players make up the majority of AI-cloned sports stars in the top 10, with notable players like Neymar (1,214 voice replications), Lionel Messi (1,037 voice replications) and Kylian Mbappe (796 voice replications), ranking sixth, seventh and tenth respectively.
