Japan’s first lawsuit over an “AI-cloned voice” has been ruled on today by the Tokyo District Court.
The plaintiff is a 55-year-old voice actor, Kenjiro Tsuda, who has voiced roles in *Jujutsu Kaisen* and *Yu-Gi-Oh*.
The defendant is an anonymous account on TikTok. Using AI, it imitates his deep voice to narrate urban legends, with 200,000 followers and an estimated monthly income of about 500,000 yen.
The challenge is legal. Japan’s Copyright Act does not protect “a voice” itself, so he can only pursue claims under rights related to likeness and the right of publicity.
Last month, Japan’s Ministry of Justice issued guidance stating that a voice also counts as a “symbol of one’s personality,” but it has no binding force.
On TikTok’s side, the argument is that this is just a “normal male voice.” Whether it sounds like him is subjective, and the platform only provides a space for posting.
How this case will be decided is likely to become a reference line for all of Asia. Today it’s the voice; next, it could be your face, writing style, or even your trading style.
This is Japan’s first such case, and the verdict will serve as a reference for similar cases that follow.
The plaintiff is a 55-year-old voice actor, Kenjiro Tsuda, who has voiced roles in *Jujutsu Kaisen* and *Yu-Gi-Oh*.
The defendant is an anonymous account on TikTok. Using AI, it imitates his deep voice to narrate urban legends, with 200,000 followers and an estimated monthly income of about 500,000 yen.
The challenge is legal. Japan’s Copyright Act does not protect “a voice” itself, so he can only pursue claims under rights related to likeness and the right of publicity.
Last month, Japan’s Ministry of Justice issued guidance stating that a voice also counts as a “symbol of one’s personality,” but it has no binding force.
On TikTok’s side, the argument is that this is just a “normal male voice.” Whether it sounds like him is subjective, and the platform only provides a space for posting.
How this case will be decided is likely to become a reference line for all of Asia. Today it’s the voice; next, it could be your face, writing style, or even your trading style.
This is Japan’s first such case, and the verdict will serve as a reference for similar cases that follow.