Taylor Swift Files Trademarks to Protect Image From AI Deepfakes

Global superstar Taylor Swift has filed trademark applications for her image in what is believed to be an attempt to protect her likeness from AI deepfakes.

Swift filed trademark applications for one image of herself and two audio clips on Friday in a seeming effort to safeguard her voice and likeness against deepfake videos and audio created using AI. The three filings were first reported by trademark attorney Josh Gerben on his blog on Monday.

Gerben writes that the trademarks “are specifically designed to protect Taylor from threats posed by artificial intelligence.”

One of the applications seeks to protect an image of Swift performing onstage, wearing one of her signature sparkly bodysuits and playing a pink guitar. She also filed trademark applications for two audio clips of her voice. In one, she says: “Hey, it’s Taylor Swift, and you can listen to my new album, The Life of a Showgirl, on demand on Amazon Music Unlimited.” In the other, she says in a lower register: “Hey, it’s Taylor. My brand new album The Life of a Showgirl is out on October 3, and you can click to presave it so you can listen to it on Spotify.”

If approved, all three registrations would cover use of the trademarks across a wide range of “entertainment services.”

Swift’s image and voice have been widely used in AI-generated deepfakes, including false advertising, fake political endorsements, and explicit content. A study named her, along with Donald Trump, as among the most frequently deepfaked individuals online. And in 2024, social media platform X blocked searches for Swift after sexually explicit AI-generated images of the singer spread on the site and were viewed millions of times. The incident prompted U.S. senators to introduce a bill that would criminalize the distribution of nonconsensual deepfake pornography.

Swift’s filings follow similar efforts by actor Matthew McConaughey, who has also sought to “trademark himself” amid growing concern over AI deepfakes and voice cloning. According to The Wall Street Journal, McConaughey pursued protection for several video clips of himself, as well as audio of him delivering his well-known line “Alright, alright, alright” from the film Dazed and Confused.

It remains unclear whether this legal approach will succeed. Gerben notes that registering a celebrity’s image and spoken voice is a new use of trademark law that has not yet been tested in court.

“Theoretically, if a lawsuit were to be filed over an AI using Swift’s voice, she could claim that any use of her voice that sounds like the registered trademark violates her trademark rights,” Gerben writes.

“The image-based filing serves a similar purpose. By protecting a distinctive visual, down to Swift’s commonly worn jumpsuit and pose, Swift’s team may gain additional grounds to pursue claims against manipulated or AI-generated images that evoke her likeness.”

Image credits: Header photo licensed via Depositphotos.