Taylor Swift has moved to legally safeguard her identity amid rising concerns around artificial intelligence misuse, filing trademark applications to protect her voice and likeness.
As per media reports, the artist has submitted three applications through her company, TAS Rights Management, to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. These include two sound trademarks based on short voice clips, “Hey, it’s Taylor Swift” and “Hey, it’s Taylor, as well as a trademark for a specific stage image from her Eras Tour.
The filing for the image covers a visual trademark for a specific stage image of Taylor Swift, depicting her holding a pink guitar with a black strap, dressed in a multi-coloured iridescent bodysuit and silver boots, standing on a pink stage with a vibrant microphone and purple-lit backdrop.
The move is widely seen as a proactive step to counter the growing threat of AI-generated deepfakes, which can replicate celebrities’ voices and appearances in fake ads, videos, or political endorsements without consent. Swift herself has previously been targeted by such misuse, including explicit deepfake imagery and misleading AI-generated content circulating online.
Reports also suggest that Swift’s filings also reflect a broader trend in the entertainment industry, where artists and actors are increasingly turning to intellectual property law to retain control over their digital identities. Similar steps have been taken by figures such as Matthew McConaughey, highlighting how the rapid rise of generative AI is reshaping the boundaries of ownership, consent, and creative rights.
