Taylor Swift, one of the world’s biggest pop stars, has taken a new approach to safeguarding her name amidst escalating fears about the power of artificial intelligence. According to news sources, Swift has registered trademarks not only for her voice but also for her image, which appears to be a direct reaction to the increasing abuse of artificial intelligence.
These filings reportedly took place on April 24 via her company, “TAS Rights Management,” with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. These filings cover three distinct trademark applications, with two covering her voice and the third for an image used during her Eras Tour.
Voice Trademarks Focus on Signature Phrases
According to several sources, the two audio logos belong to the phrases "Hey, it's Taylor Swift" and "Hey, it's Taylor." The brief audio messages will be familiar to fans, since the singer had been using them in online streams and promotions.
Whereas previous lawsuits have centered on the song or the lyrics, the current lawsuit by Swift seems to center on her speaking voice, an innovative move that according to intellectual property lawyer Josh Gerben, marks a novel approach in the entertainment world.
This is because AI technology is increasingly allowing for celebrities’ voices to be recreated through imitation without infringing on any copyrighted material, meaning that trademark laws might provide the better legal solution here than copyright.
Image Filing Linked to Eras Tour
The last trademark application involves a known performance picture from the Eras Tour by Swift. It is reported that in this picture, Swift appears to be posing with a pink guitar, adorned with a colorful shiny bodysuit and silver boots while standing on a pink stage against a purple backdrop.
It is to be noted that this image had been used by Swift for promoting her movie from the Eras Tour that had been uploaded on Disney+.
AI Misuse Has Been a Growing Concern
This follows after several cases where AI content has featured Swift's picture without her authorization. In recent times, her image has been featured in AI-created political endorsements, deepfakes, and sexually explicit AI-generated pictures.
An example of one of the controversies that occurred is during the 2024 United States presidential elections where fake AI-created images implied that Taylor Swift supported Donald Trump. In response to this controversy, the musician openly spoke about her concern about the threat of AI.
This series of events led to a discussion regarding the privacy of celebrities and the absence of legal measures against the misuse of AI.
Part of a Bigger Industry Shift
However, Swift is not alone in taking this approach. Actor Mathew McConaughey has applied for trademarks earlier this year that include his voice and some of his most popular phrases such as “Alright, alright, alright.”
Experts expect other celebrities to take the same step, given how difficult it has become to distinguish between content generated by humans and AI tools. It can be noted that traditional copyright law has very little room to accommodate claims of voice-cloning.
Protecting More Than Music
Taylor Swift has hundreds of trademarks covering her music and identity. Yet, this recent application demonstrates the need to safeguard one’s identity as an even more pressing concern today.
As AI transforms the landscape of entertainment and media production, famous individuals are compelled to go beyond protecting music and films. For Taylor Swift, protecting her voice and identity could be as much about keeping herself safe as it is about making money.