Taylor Swift makes trademark filings amid possible AI threats
Taylor Swift has filed to trademark her voice and likeness in a supposed bid to fight threats against AI.
According to Variety, the singer’s company filed for three trademarks at the US Patent and Trademark Office on April 24th, with two relating to her voice saying the words, “Hey, it’s Taylor Swift,” and, “Hey, it’s Taylor”.
The last is a visual trademark covering an image of Swift “holding a pink guitar, with a black strap and wearing a multi-colored iridescent bodysuit with silver boots. She is standing on a pink stage in front of a multi-colored microphone with purple lights in the background,” per reports of the filings.
The applications were made by Swift’s company TAS Rights Management, following a similar trademark being granted for actor Matthew McConaughey and his catchphrase “Alright, alright, alright” in January to attempt fighting AI deepfakes.
That decision came despite McConaughey being an investor with the company ElevenLabs, which launched an ‘Iconic Voice Marketplace’ late last year, allowing the voices and likenesses of actors who consent to be replicated by AI.
In Swift’s case, she has been the victim of a number of malicious AI deepfake scams in recent years, with false pornographic images being shared of her online in 2024. Additionally, during the US presidential campaign the same year, Donald Trump shared a fake AI photo of her endorsing him.
However, this is not the first time Swift has come up against the issue of trademarks over the course of this year. In March, she was sued by a former America’s Got Talent performer over the title of her most recent album, The Life of a Showgirl.
Maren Wade attempted to sue the singer and her record label, UMG Recordings, over the title due to its likeness to her own brand, Confessions of a Showgirl, which has a trademark covering podcasts, live shows, TV, and other assets.
Wade’s court documents of the case complained that Swift did not release her album “quietly”, adding, “Within weeks, the designation was affixed to consumer goods, stamped onto labels, tags, and packaging, and deployed as a source identifier across retail channels — all directed at the same audience Plaintiff had spent years cultivating.”
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