AI tool that copied actor’s ‘lustrous’ voice violated his rights, says Tokyo court
Tsuda Kenjiro’s legal team argued that the content posted by the anonymous TikTok account was ‘sordid’. Photograph: Dick Thomas JohnsonView image in fullscreenTsuda Kenjiro’s legal team argued that the content posted by the anonymous TikTok account was ‘sordid’. “The unauthorised use of a performer’s voice … can be considered an infringement on publicity rights,” said the presiding judge, Aya Takahashi.The lawsuit is believed to be the first in Japan seeking to defend an individual’s vocal identity against AI-generated copies.
- ▪Tsuda Kenjiro’s legal team argued that the content posted by the anonymous TikTok account was ‘sordid’.
- ▪Photograph: Dick Thomas JohnsonView image in fullscreenTsuda Kenjiro’s legal team argued that the content posted by the anonymous TikTok account was ‘sordid’.
- ▪“The unauthorised use of a performer’s voice … can be considered an infringement on publicity rights,” said the presiding judge, Aya Takahashi.The lawsuit is believed to be the first in Japan seeking to defend an individual’s vocal identity
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| Original publisher | The Guardian — World |
| Canonical URL | https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/sep/30/ai-tool-copied-actor-kenjiro-tsuda-tokyo-court |
| Publication time | Wed, 30 Sep 2026 11:09:52 GMT |
| Retrieval time | 2026-09-30T11:17:00.792Z |
| Last seen | 2026-09-30T11:17:00.792Z |
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| Excerpt source | publisher body |
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| Summary source text | contentText |
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| Cluster | Koejmvbk5a_v · 1 stories |
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Basis: Derived from the published RSS/Atom feed. Contact: [email protected]. Reviewed: 2026-07-24.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Tsuda Kenjiro’s legal team argued that the content posted by the anonymous TikTok account was ‘sordid’. Photograph: Dick Thomas JohnsonView image in fullscreenTsuda Kenjiro’s legal team argued that the content posted by the anonymous TikTok account was ‘sordid’. Photograph: Dick Thomas JohnsonAI (artificial intelligence)AI tool that copied actor’s ‘lustrous’ voice violated his rights, says Tokyo courtKenjiro Tsuda wins case against TikTok account in landmark verdict to protect publicity rightsJustin McCurry in TokyoWed 30 Sep 2026 07.09 EDTSharePrefer the Guardian on GoogleA court in Japan has ruled that the human voice has legal protection after a landmark case involving a well known actor and a TikTok account whose AI-generated videos, he claimed, had cloned his “lustrous” baritone…
Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at The Guardian — World.
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