Tokyo Court Establishes Legal Precedent Protecting Human Voices from AI Cloning

TOKYO — A landmark ruling by a Tokyo court has established legal protections for human voices against unauthorized artificial intelligence cloning. The decision, issued Wednesday, addresses a lawsuit filed by Kenjiro Tsuda, a prominent Japanese anime voice actor known for his distinctive baritone.

Tsuda sued the anonymous operator of a TikTok account named “Nanami” after it used AI technology to replicate his voice for over 180 videos focusing on urban legends and paranormal topics. As of November 2025, the account had amassed more than 200,000 subscribers, with many viewers noting the uncanny resemblance between the AI narrator and Tsuda’s signature sound.

In his legal complaint, Tsuda argued that the defendant was wrongfully profiting by leveraging his vocal identity to attract an audience. He requested that the content be removed entirely.

Presiding Judge Aya Takahashi declared this the first acknowledgment in Japan of an individual’s right to control their voice. Citing court documents reviewed by The Associated Press, Judge Takahashi stated, “The human voice is symbolic of individual personality, just like one’s portrait.” She further determined that the deliberate exploitation of Tsuda’s commercial appeal constituted an infringement of publicity rights.

While the court sided with Tsuda on the principle, it dismissed the specific demand for the deletion of all videos because the TikTok account had already been shut down. The defendant had contended that the AI-generated audio differed sufficiently from Tsuda’s actual recordings and did not harm his professional reputation.

The ruling arrives amid rising anxiety among voice actors regarding the proliferation of AI clones on social media platforms. It mirrors global debates over vocal likeness, including a 2024 incident where OpenAI paused development of a ChatGPT voice feature after actress Scarlett Johansson noted its striking similarity to her own. Conversely, some high-profile actors, such as Michael Caine and Matthew McConaughey, have entered into agreements with voice-cloning firm ElevenLabs to permit the replication of their voices.