Pop sensation Taylor Swift has submitted trademark applications for two audio snippets and a picture of herself. According to a trademark attorney, the celebrity is making an effort to protect her voice and identity from deepfake videos and audio produced by artificial intelligence.
Swift's TAS Rights Management is listed as the proprietor of the image and audio snippets in the applications that were submitted to the US Patent and Trademark Office on Friday.
A request for comment on Monday was not immediately answered by Swift's representative or the attorneys identified on the documents. “Hey, it's Taylor Swift, and you can listen to my new album, ‘The Life of a Showgirl,’ on demand on Amazon Music Unlimited,” Swift is heard saying in one of the audio samples.
Swift is attempting to trademark a picture of herself performing live while wearing a sequined costume and holding a pink guitar. Swift's voice and visage have appeared in numerous AI-generated deepfakes, ranging from obscene imagery to phony political endorsements to deceptive advertisements.
Similar applications have been granted for actor Matthew McConaughey. “We want to create a clear perimeter around ownership with consent and attribution the norm in an AI world,” he stated to the Wall Street Journal in January.
The applications “are specifically designed to protect Taylor from threats posed by artificial intelligence,” according to trademark lawyer Josh Gerben, who first revealed that Swift submitted them on his blog on Monday.
“Trademark filings can offer an additional layer of protection, even though existing 'Right of Publicity’ laws offer some protection against unauthorized use of a famous individual's likeness,” Gerben stated.
According to Gerben, registering a celebrity's voice is a novel application of trademark registration that hasn't been tried in court.
In the past, vocalists used copyright laws to safeguard their recorded songs, according to Gerben. “However, AI technologies now enable users to create completely original content that imitates an artist's voice without replicating an existing recording, creating a gap that trademarks may help fill.”
According to Gerben, the image that Taylor Swift is attempting to trademark has a similar function. “Swift's team may gain additional grounds to pursue claims against manipulated or AI-generated images that evoke her likeness by protecting a distinctive visual, down to Swift's frequently worn jumpsuit and pose,” he wrote.
While copyright and publicity laws already provide some safeguards, trademarks could offer an additional layer of defense against AI-generated voice clones and manipulated images. If successful, Swift's approach may influence how other public figures protect their likenesses and could shape the future legal framework for AI impersonation in the entertainment industry.