What happened

The voiceover artist, Yin, sued 5 companies, including the provider of the AI text-to-speech system and the company that had recorded her voice. The system in question uses generative artificial intelligence to recreate voices, allegedly with high precision.

This case is seen to venture into uncharted legal territory, where traditional copyright laws may not apply, thereby potentially setting a precedent for how individual likeness (e.g. “right to voice”) in the era of AI is perceived and protected..

Yin argued this represents a threat to her work and potential income, and added to concerns raised by voice actors globally over the future of their profession.

In April 2024, the court determined that the AI-generated voice was identifiable as Yin's due to its close resemblance in tone and style, thus infringing on her voice rights under Chinese law. 

The defendants in the case were ordered to cease activities and pay compensation to the voice actor. 

Why it happened

The case arose from Yin's discovery that her recordings, initially made for a media company, were used to train an AI system without her knowledge or consent. 

The defendants argued that they had legally obtained the recordings and that the AI-generated voice was sufficiently distinct from Yin's original voice. 

However, the court found that the AI's output closely matched Yin's vocal characteristics, leading to public association with her identity.