Kenjiro Tsuda sues TikTok over AI clone of his voice

The lawsuit is brought by Kenjiro Tsuda, a voice actor whose credits include "Jujutsu Kaisen" and "Yu-Gi-Oh!" — franchises that have made him one of the better-known performers in Japanese animation. He argues that videos on TikTok feature an AI clone of his "lustrous" baritone.

The article frames the case against a broader backdrop: AI imitation is a growing concern among performers worldwide, and the body says the threat has roiled Japan's animation industry, where voice actors are sometimes worshipped as much as the characters they play. Within that industry, the suit is believed to be the country's first seeking to defend an individual's vocal identity against AI-generated copies.

Because the verdict has not yet been delivered, the stakes turn on Wednesday's ruling — specifically on whether a Japanese court treats a performer's voice as something that can be defended against an AI copy. If it does, the outcome is likely to matter to other voice actors considering similar claims; if it does not, the question of how vocal identity is protected in Japan may remain open.