How Utah Stands On AI Recreating Robin William’s Voice

Utah Wouldn’t Want Its Pioneers Puppeteered

Robin Williams was more than a comedian—he seemed to be a soul on fire, a voice that could make you laugh and cry in the same breath. And now some people are using AI reanimating him to deliver punchlines about topics he never lived to see. His daughter Zelda calls it “disgusting, over-processed hotdogs out of the lives of human beings.”

A Little RESPECT

I have to admit my first reaction to Zelda was a bit stand-offish. I felt like she might relax a bit and let her father be remembered by tackling the hot topics of the day with the calm of the past, not that Robin ever came across as calm. But after considering the issue it hit me that in Utah we would know better than to let AI creators have access to our past visionaries.

I realized I would be very uncomfortable if someone tried to tap into old prophets like Gordon B. Hinckley’s gentle wisdom or visionaries like Jon Huntsman Sr.’s philanthropic fire, our icons didn’t just speak—they stood for something. They rallied for education, dignity, and compassion and charted ideas that helped us sidestep social dilemmas. Would I want their voices repurposed by algorithms, stripped of context and consent?

Moral High Ground

This isn’t about tech paranoia. It’s about moral clarity. I am grateful that we have had the good sense to let most of our past hero's rest in peace. I mean we don't even use their likenesses, well except for Brigham Young. For some reason he is the one everyone seems OK to pluck out of history to sell product, from craft beers to yogurt, to the latest gym membership.

AI can be a tool for creation, but when it becomes a puppet master for the departed, it crosses a line. In a state built on reverence, resilience, and respect, we should be the ones to say: Not here. Not like this.