Generative AI has brought a number of gifts and burdens to the world, particularly in the field of intellectual property law. AI has challenged norms about what can be patented, who (or what) can create artwork, what rights of publicity celebrities have to defend themselves regarding AI imitations of their likeness, and where those rights and limits begin and end.

The eruption of Artificial Intelligence technologies has created new problems for lawmakers. One of the most controversial functions of AI is the way the technologies train themselves. Currently, AI training processes hundreds of millions of datapoints publicly available on the internet. These include sites likes Wikipedia and Project Gutemberg, as well as articles, blogs, forums, and images. One consequence is that the technology may avail itself to copyrighted material during training. Thus, ownership of the new content may be called into question.

“I would never wish to incorporate this technology into my work at all. I strongly feel that [AI] is an insult to life itself.” —Hayao Miyazaki

Studio Ghibli is a Japanese animation company established in 1985 by artist Hayao Miyazaki. Studio Ghibli crafted a distinguishable artistic style of animation with international appeal. Today, the studio is worth $245 million and maintains strict licensing and film distribution rights throughout North America, Europe, and Asia.

With the emergence of generative AI in entertainment media, the right of publicity in relation to actors’ likeness is becoming increasingly prevalent. Modifying voices using generative AI (“genAI”) has become a serious concern amongst voice actors, and it is important to examine whether voices are a part of identity protected by public use law.