Online clips of famous faces are now so convincingly manipulated that it can be hard to tell what’s real and what’s fake.

Published: 5 May 2026
Authors: Nicky Jenkins

Generative AI has become alarmingly good at copying not just how people look, but how they sound  and when your voice, face or name is your brand, that’s a pretty big problem.

Trade mark law has become an unlikely but increasingly popular weapon in celebrities’ growing arsenal against AI misuse.

Taylor Swift: from pop powerhouse to trade mark trailblazer

Taylor Swift is the latest, and arguably highest‑profile celebrity to take this route. Just a few days ago, Swift filed three trade mark applications in the US covering two short voice clips: “Hey, it’s Taylor” and “Hey, it’s Taylor Swift”, together with a specific on‑stage image of her holding a pink guitar during her Eras Tour.

At first glance, this might seem a little strange. After all, Swift already has copyright over her music and further protection under publicity and image rights. But the problem with AI is that it doesn’t always copy existing material. Instead, it generates something new that just happens to sound or look uncannily like the original.

Taylor Swift’s filings appear designed to tackle exactly this gap, giving her grounds to challenge content that is “confusingly similar” to her voice or image, even if it isn’t a direct copy of any particular song or photo.

Given the number of AI‑generated deepfakes involving Taylor Swift in recent years, including fake product endorsements, explicit imagery and even fabricated political endorsements, it’s not hard to see why she might want another layer of legal protection.

Sound marks: no longer just for lions and chimes

Iconic examples such as MGM’s lion roar and NBC’s familiar chimes have long been registered as trade marks in the US, and UK trade mark law has also expressly recognised sound marks for many years. What is new, however, is applying that concept to a human voice.

Taylor Swift’s filings are a good example of this shift. Rather than trying to register her entire singing voice (a much trickier proposition), the filings focus on short, identifiable spoken phrases used in promotional contexts. These are exactly the sorts of clips that are easily repurposed by AI tools for adverts, chatbots or fake announcements. They also represent the sorts of uses that trade mark law is particularly well‑suited to police.

This reflects trade mark law being used creatively to address a problem it was not originally designed to solve, but one it may now be particularly well suited to

Matthew McConaughey: “Alright, alright, alright” goes legal

Taylor Swift isn’t alone. Earlier this year, Matthew McConaughey confirmed that he had secured multiple US trade marks covering his voice, image and crucially, his instantly recognisable catchphrase, “Alright, alright, alright!”.  That phrase has been associated with McConaughey since Dazed and Confused in 1993, but in the age of AI, it’s also ripe for misuse. Deepfake audio can drop it into adverts, videos or games that have absolutely nothing to do with the actor, and may even cut across brands he’d never endorse.

By registering that sound and associated material as trade marks, McConaughey has drawn a clear legal line around what can, and can’t, be used with his permission. Or, as he reportedly put it, creating a “clear perimeter around ownership” in an AI‑driven world.

Why trade marks, and why now?

So why are stars turning to trade marks rather than relying on existing image and publicity rights?

One big reason is enforcement. Trade mark law is well‑established, commercially focused and crucially, designed to deal with confusion in the marketplace. If consumers might reasonably think a product, service or piece of content is connected with a particular celebrity, trade marks can be a powerful tool to stop it.

AI has made “confusion” much easier to create at scale. A single model can churn out thousands of look‑alike videos or sound‑alike audio clips in minutes, often without copying any one protected work directly. Trade marks shift the focus away from copying, and onto misrepresentation.

There’s also a signalling element. High‑profile filings by figures like Swift and McConaughey send a message to platforms, brands and AI developers: this territory is being staked.

A trend that’s only just beginning

Most of these recent filings are US only, and they won’t magically stop AI misuse worldwide. But they do suggest a growing trend. We might expect more actors, musicians and public figures to follow suit, especially those whose voices or appearances are commercially valuable beyond traditional music and film roles.

For now, trade mark law is being asked to do something new: protect personality, identity and authenticity in a digital world where imitation has never been easier. Whether courts fully embrace that role remains to be seen.

The message from celebrities is becoming clear. In the age of AI, names, faces and voices are no longer just personal attributes; they operate as commercial assets. Trade marks are proving to be one of the more effective ways of protecting them.