August 26, 2026, (Inside AI) — A legal dispute has erupted over a voice from the cosmos. The company that controls the intellectual property of the late astronomer Carl Sagan filed a federal lawsuit on Tuesday against AI startup Luma AI, alleging the company used an audio clip from Sagan’s iconic documentary series “Cosmos” without permission to promote its video-generation platform.
The complaint was lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California by Druyan-Sagan Associates Inc., the entity that manages Sagan’s estate and intellectual property. The case number is 2:26-cv-09474.
The lawsuit claims Luma AI incorporated Sagan’s voice into an advertisement for its AI video-generation tool, creating a false impression that the late scientist endorsed the product. The estate alleges this constitutes unauthorized use of Sagan’s name, voice, and likeness, violating both copyright and right-of-publicity laws.
Voice Cloning Collides With Celebrity Estates
This case marks one of the first major legal battles where a deceased public figure’s voice is allegedly replicated or reused by an AI company for commercial gain. Sagan, who died in 1996, remains a cultural icon through “Cosmos,” which first aired in 1980 and has been seen by hundreds of millions worldwide.
The estate’s legal team includes Joey Roesler of CMG Law, along with John Tehranian and Peter Afrasiabi of One LLP. Attorney information for Luma AI has not yet been filed with the court.
Luma AI, a San Francisco-based startup known for its Dream Machine video-generation model, has raised significant venture capital to compete with tools like OpenAI’s Sora and Runway. The company has not publicly commented on the lawsuit.
Right of Publicity Meets Generative Media
The legal theory behind the estate’s claims draws on California’s robust right-of-publicity statute, which protects a person’s name, voice, signature, photograph, or likeness from unauthorized commercial use for 70 years after death. Sagan’s estate falls well within that window.
Beyond state law, the estate also invokes federal copyright protection over the “Cosmos” audio recording itself. If Luma AI used an actual clip from the series, rather than a synthetic clone, the copyright claim would be straightforward. If the voice was generated by AI to sound like Sagan, the right-of-publicity claim becomes central.
This distinction matters for the broader AI industry. Several pending lawsuits address whether training AI models on copyrighted works constitutes infringement. But this case targets the output: an advertisement that allegedly exploits a famous voice without consent.
The lawsuit seeks injunctive relief to stop further use of Sagan’s voice and likeness, along with monetary damages. The estate has not disclosed the specific ad or platform where the audio clip appeared.
Legal experts note that celebrity estates have become increasingly aggressive in policing AI-generated impersonations. In 2024, the estate of comedian George Carlin settled a lawsuit against a podcast that used AI to mimic his voice. Similar disputes have involved actors, musicians, and public figures.
For AI startups, the risk is clear: using a famous voice, even for a short promotional clip, can trigger expensive litigation. The outcome of this case could set a precedent for how courts balance AI innovation against the rights of deceased celebrities and their heirs.
The case will proceed in California federal court, where judges have shown willingness to apply right-of-publicity laws to new technologies. A hearing date has not yet been scheduled.
