Celebrities like Taylor Swift are setting the guardrails for the AI age

Taylor Swift recently filed a series of trademark applications designed to protect the star from AI-enabled impersonations. Swift already holds a wide array of trademarks, but these latest filings, at least one intellectual property firm suggests, serve a new purpose: protecting the timbre and character of her voice itself through what is known as a “sound mark.” In two recent filings, posted April 24 by Swift’s company, the celebrity applied to trademark two recordings. In one, she says, “Hey, it’s Taylor,” and in the other, “Hey, it’s Taylor Swift.” The recordings themselves are not parti...