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HyperKnown in the news.Consent, on the record.

Coverage of HyperKnown and of real people licensing their likeness for AI, on their own terms.

“AI can make content abundant. It can’t manufacture someone’s permission.”
William Saunders, HyperKnown, in The Guardian

‘Synthetic twin’: Why Socceroo Cristian Volpato is the latest footballer to license his AI clone

By Henry Belot and Jack Snape, The Guardian, 25 October 2026

The Guardian turned to HyperKnown’s William Saunders on the question at the heart of AI likeness: consent. As betting firms and brands use AI images of athletes without asking, Saunders argues the next trust signal won’t read “made with AI” but “made with this person’s permission”. That is the standard HyperKnown is built on.

What HyperKnown told The Guardian

  • Athletes are starting to see that if they don’t license their AI likeness, someone else will use it anyway.
  • The AFL telling Sportsbet to stop using AI images of players without consent shows what happens when technology gets ahead of consent. The counter-move is people establishing their rights before others decide for them.
  • Permission is becoming a commercial requirement for AI content, not a nice-to-have.

The story covers Socceroo Cristian Volpato’s AI likeness deal with US company Callandor, and the wider rush by athletes to control their digital identities. HyperKnown features as the Sydney start-up doing similar deals, with consent at the centre.

Read the story on The Guardian