Taylor Swift files 3 new trademark applications. One expert says it is
to curb AI threats
[April 29, 2026]
By MARIA SHERMAN
NEW YORK (AP) — Taylor Swift filed three new trademark applications with
the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, a move one legal expert theorizes it
is to protect her voice and image from potential misuse through
artificial intelligence.
Two of the applications filed Friday are sound trademarks covering her
voice, one of her saying “Hey, it’s Taylor Swift,” and the other is
“Hey, it’s Taylor.”
The third application is for a visual trademark, described in the filing
as “a photograph of Taylor Swift holding a pink guitar, with a black
strap and wearing a multicolored iridescent bodysuit with silver boots.
She is standing on a pink stage in front of a multicolored microphone
with purple lights in the background.”
The filings were made on behalf on Swift’s TAS Rights Management. All
three have been approved and are currently awaiting assignment to an
examining attorney.
The Associated Press has reached out to a representative for Swift as
well as Rebecca Liebowitz, partner at law firm Venable, who is listed as
the attorney on the filings. Requests for comment were not immediately
returned.
News of Swift's new trademark filings made the rounds on Monday after
first being noticed by intellectual property attorney Josh Gerben. In a
blog post shared Monday, Gerben theorized that the trademarks are
“specifically designed to protect Taylor from threats posed by
artificial intelligence,” in response to growing concerns that AI could
challenge celebrities' abilities to control their voices and likenesses
without their consent.
In his post, Gerben explained that “Right of Publicity” laws — which
protect celebrities from having their images or likenesses used to sell
products without their permission — offer some protection against
unauthorized use of a celebrity's likeness, but trademark filings like
Swift's can offer additional protection.
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Taylor Swift appears at the MTV Video Music Awards in Elmont, N.Y.,
on Sept. 11, 2024. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
 Swift has been a target of AI misuse
in the past. Pornographic deepfake images of her have circulated
online, making the singer the most famous victim of a scourge that
tech platforms and antiabuse groups have struggled to fix. In
another instance, the superstar was shown in a fake endorsement of
President Donald Trump during his 2024 campaign, which the
then-candidate reposted and shared as genuine.
“The Life of a Showgirl” singer is not the only celebrity to pursue
these kinds of trademarks. In January, attorneys for actor Matthew
McConaughey secured eight trademarks from the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office including a sound trademark of his catchphrase
“Alright, alright, alright.”
Attorneys for the entertainment law firm Yorn Levine, which
represented McConaughey, told Variety the trademarks were filed in
an attempt to protect his voice and likeness from unauthorized use
by AI, and to protect him in developing new opportunities using AI.
Last year, McConaughey made a deal with voice-cloning company
ElevenLabs that will allow its artificial intelligence technology to
replicate his voice.
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