Artificial intelligence can replicate a person’s voice, image, and identity with remarkable accuracy. For public figures and brands alike, this raises an urgent legal question: how can the law protect identity in a world where it can be convincingly manufactured by almost anyone? Recent efforts by Taylor Swift to trademark elements of her voice and likeness put that question front and center — and signal a shift in how intellectual property law may be used to combat deepfakes.
The Rise of Deepfakes—and the Legal Gap
Deepfakes are AI-generated audio, video, or images that mimic real individuals, and they are reshaping the digital landscape, whether for better or for worse. What once required sophisticated production tools can now be created with widely accessible AI platforms, often in a matter of minutes. These developments have enabled everything from fabricated celebrity endorsements to misleading promotional content, creating both reputational and economic harm.
The law, however, has struggled to keep pace. Copyright law protects original recordings and fixed works, but it does not neatly extend to many AI-generated imitations. Similarly, the right of publicity offers some protection against unauthorized commercial use of a person’s name or likeness, but it varies significantly across jurisdictions and usually requires harm to occur first. This gap has left individuals and brands exposed in an increasingly synthetic media environment.
Swift’s Strategy: Trademarking Identity
Against this backdrop, trademark law is emerging as a creative and potentially powerful tool. Trademarks protect identifiers that signal to consumers the source of goods or services, such as names, logos, and slogans. Swift is attempting to extend those protections to distinctive elements of her identity, particularly aspects of her voice and visual persona that are closely tied to her brand.
If a deepfake uses a voice or likeness that is so recognizable that consumers believe Swift is endorsing a product or participating in a service, that use may create actionable consumer confusion. In that sense, trademark law could provide a path to challenge certain AI-generated content when it intersects with commercial activity.
Where Trademark Law Helps—and Where It Falls Short
Trademark law offers several meaningful advantages in this context. Its focus on consumer confusion makes it especially well-suited for addressing deepfakes used in advertising or endorsements. Federal registration also provides a more uniform framework for enforcement compared to the patchwork nature of state publicity laws, allowing rights holders to act more decisively when their brand identity is misused.
At the same time, trademark protection is not a comprehensive solution. Its scope is inherently limited to commercial uses that are likely to confuse consumers, leaving many non-commercial deepfakes, such as satire, commentary, parody, and many types of abuse, outside its reach. There are also threshold challenges, as not every voice or likeness will qualify as a protectable trademark; it must function as a distinctive source identifier in the minds of the public. Even where protection exists, enforcement remains difficult in practice, particularly when content is created anonymously or distributed across global platforms with little accountability to US authorities.
A Broader Shift: Identity as Intellectual Property
Swift’s approach reflects a broader shift in legal thinking: the recognition that identity itself can function as a form of intellectual property. In an era where AI can replicate not only creative works but the individuals behind them, it makes sense to adapt traditional doctrines to new use cases until lawmakers catch up.
For businesses, creators, and professionals, this shift carries significant implications. A person’s voice, image, and persona are no longer purely personal attributes or state-level name-image-likeness rights. They are brand assets that can be monetized, licensed, and, increasingly, misappropriated. As a result, proactive legal strategies are essential. Trademark registration, digital monitoring, and contractual safeguards are all tools that can help mitigate the risks posed by emerging technologies.
Contact Romano Law
If you need help protecting your brand, likeness, or intellectual property in the age of AI, the attorneys at Romano Law can help. We advise businesses, creators, and professionals on trademark protection, digital rights, and emerging legal risks, including those involving artificial intelligence and deepfakes.
Contact Romano Law today to discuss how we can safeguard your identity and brand in a rapidly changing digital environment.
Contributions to this blog by Kennedy McKinney.
