Tokyo Court Recognizes Voices Can Be Legally Protected Assets in Major AI-Cloning Case
Author: Aamnah Fatima Khan
October 7, 2026
HRRC commends the recognition of voice rights by the Tokyo court as an important step towards protecting individuals from the unauthorized use of AI-generated imitation and exploitation. We urge governments and digital platforms to develop clear safeguards that protect the rights of celebrities, along with the general public.
![Tsude Kenjiro at Red Carpet of the Tokyo International Film Festival in 2023 [Image credit: Dick Thomas Johnson/Wikimedia Commons]](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/f05ed1_cd06b1508294417e820679533b0c395f~mv2.jpg/v1/crop/x_1,y_25,w_499,h_433/fill/w_499,h_433,al_c,q_80,enc_auto/f05ed1_cd06b1508294417e820679533b0c395f~mv2.jpg)
A Tokyo court has recognized for the first time that the voice of a person can be protected under Japan’s publicity rights, in a major case involving the alleged unauthorized use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) replication of prominent voice actor Kenjiro Tsuda’s voice.
The Tokyo District Court ruled on 30th September 2026 that a human voice and similarity to a person’s appearance, can serve as a symbol of individual personality and may therefore carry commercially vulnerable and exploitable value protected by publicity rights.
A voice actor, Tsuda, known for Kento Nanami in the anime series Jujutsu Kaisen, sued TikTok’s operator after an account posted more than 180 videos about urban legends and paranormal phenomena using narration resembling his distinctive voice.
The account had attracted more than 200,000 followers. Tsuda argued that its operator used an AI-generated imitation of his voice to draw viewers and generate revenue without his authorization.
However, the court did not determine whether the videos themselves infringed Tsuda’s rights as the account had already been deleted. It dismissed his request requiring TikTok to remove the content.
The ruling comes at a time when Japanese performers are increasingly concerned about AI-generated voice cloning, with unauthorized singing and narration using voices similar to celebrities spreading across social media.
A survey cited by the Yomiuri Shimbun identified 345 suspected unauthorized users of famous Japanese voices over two months, collectively receiving at least 230 million views.
Legal experts said the decision could strengthen the ability of celebrities to seek damages or injunction relief. However, questions remain over what evidence is sufficient to prove that an AI-generated voice unlawfully imitates a particular person.
The ruling also places greater emphasis on social media platforms’ own responsibility, which might face subsequent increasing pressure to establish clearer procedures for tackling complaints involving AI-generated voices.
Glossary
AI-Cloning – a digital duplicate that can mimic a person’s knowledge, appearance, or voice. AI clones come in all shapes—text-based chatbots, synthetic voice models, or even video avatars that look and sound just like you.
AI-generated – created by artificial intelligence.
Alleged – said or thought by some people to be the stated bad or illegal thing, although you have no proof.
Authorization – official permission for something to happen, or the act of giving someone official permission to do something.
Damages – money that is paid to someone by a person or organization who has been responsible for causing them some injury or loss.
Digital platforms – business models that use online infrastructure to facilitate interactions between groups. Examples include: Social media channels (like Instagram, facebook, X etc), Online marketplaces (ebay, Amazon, etc) and Crowdsourcing websites and apps.
Distinctive – Something that is distinctive is easy to recognize because it is different from other things.
Exploitable – able to be used in a way that helps people.
Imitation – made to look like something else.
Injunction – an official order given by a law court, usually to stop someone from doing something.
Paranormal – impossible to explain by known natural forces or by science.
Procedures – a set of actions that is the official or accepted way of doing something.
Publicity – the activity of making certain that someone or something attracts a lot of interest or attention from many people, or the attention received as a result of this activity.
Publicity Rights or Right of Publicity – The right of publicity prevents the unauthorized commercial use of an individual's name, likeness, or other recognizable aspects of one's persona. It gives an individual the right to license (permission) the use of their identity for commercial use.
Replication – to make or do something again in exactly the same way.
Revenue – the income that a government or company receives regularly.
Subsequent – happening after something else.
Sued – to take legal action against a person or organization, especially by making a legal claim for money because of some harm that they have caused you.
Unauthorized – without someone's official permission to do something or be in a particular place.
Unlawful – not allowed by law.
Vulnerable – able to be easily physically or mentally hurt, influenced, or attacked
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