Taylor Swift has applied to trademark her voice and image in the United States, in what appears to be an effort to protect herself from artificial intelligence impersonations.
Swift has lodged three trademark applications. One uses a promotional photograph of her performing during her Eras Tour. The other two are audio recordings of her saying her own name, originally recorded to promote her most recent album.
The singer has filed three US trademark applications in a bid to block artificial intelligence impersonations of her likeness and voice.
Trademark lawyer Josh Gerben, who first reported the applications on his website, said the move could give Swift broader protection than simply stopping direct copies of the registered material. He said trademark law’s standard of “confusingly similar” use means she could potentially challenge AI-generated content that resembles her voice or appearance without copying it exactly. That could include, he said, AI images of her in a jumpsuit holding a guitar, or AI audio that sounds like her voice.
The photograph filed with the application shows Swift on stage holding a pink guitar with a black strap, wearing a multi-coloured iridescent bodysuit with silver boots. It has previously been used as an official promotional image for the Disney+ film of the Eras Tour.
The two audio clips feature Swift saying hey, it’s Taylor and hey, it’s Taylor Swift. She originally recorded them for Spotify and Amazon Music to promote her album The Life of a Showgirl last autumn.
AI-generated versions of Swift have appeared in several forms, including explicit images and a fake election advertisement in which she appeared to encourage people to vote for Donald Trump.
The applications follow a similar move by actor Matthew McConaughey, who became the first celebrity to attempt to use trademark law to protect his voice and image from AI misuse.
Souces: BBC
