Tokyo court recognizes voice as publicity right in AI voice-clone case against TikTok

What happened

On Sept. 30, 2026, the Tokyo District Court ruled that a person's voice can be protected as a publicity right in Japan, in the first ruling of its kind in the country. Presiding Judge Aya Takahashi held that "the unauthorised use of a performer's voice can be considered an infringement of publicity rights" when the purpose is exclusively to take advantage of its commercial appeal, saying the human voice "symbolizes an individual's character" like a portrait.

The case

Actor and voice artist Kenjiro Tsuda (Jujutsu Kaisen, Yu-Gi-Oh!) sued TikTok in November 2025 over at least 188 videos posted by an anonymous account between July 2024 and September 2025 that used AI-generated narration imitating his distinctive baritone. Tsuda's lawyers estimated the account, which attracted more than 200,000 followers, could have generated roughly ¥500,000–¥750,000 per month through view-based creator payouts. TikTok argued the videos used a generic male voice and that any resemblance was subjective; the account holder claimed the voice model was trained on a friend's voice.

What the ruling did and did not do

The court dismissed Tsuda's demand that the videos be removed, because the account had already been closed. No damages or removal order issued; the ruling's significance is the legal recognition itself. Tsuda's lawyer told reporters he would not appeal. These are the reported facts of the ruling; nothing about the underlying copyright treatment of AI-generated voice clones in Japan has been decided beyond this case.