Dragon Ball voice actor Masako Nozawa says using her voice with generative AI without permission is the same as stealing
Masako Nozawa comments on the use of generative AI in voice acting: "I can't forgive using it without asking. I want people to follow the rules.” After watching AI videos of her voice: "This is not my voice. Using it without asking is unforgivable. It's the same as stealing, and it makes me angry. My voice is mine, and my acting is mine too. If anyone uses even a little of it, they should get permission." "What (AI) makes might sound like me. It might even be a perfect copy. But it has no heart, does it? Without heart, it's no good, whatever the role. Even a voice that's only crying is different when you cry with real feeling. That's what I believe." To young people aiming to become voice actors in the AI era: "Work hard so that people say, as a voice actor, it absolutely has to be that person. Without heart, you're just reading the letters of the lines, so make them living words."
Context
One of Japan's most famous voice actors speaking out adds weight to a push by performers for consent rules as AI voice cloning spreads.
This is secondhand: a Dragon Ball fan account is relaying an English translation of comments Nozawa made in Japan, reported by NHK. The translation has not been checked against the original Japanese remarks.
Deep dive
On October 15, the account DbsHype posted a translation of comments by Masako Nozawa, the longtime Japanese voice of Goku in Dragon Ball, on the use of generative AI in voice acting.
According to the translation, Nozawa said she cannot forgive her voice being used without asking and wants people to follow the rules. After watching AI videos using her voice, she said it was not her voice, that using it without asking is the same as stealing, and that anyone using even a little of her voice or acting should get permission. She said an AI copy might sound like her but has no heart, and urged young voice actors to work so hard that a role has to be played by them.
NHK reported the same day on Nozawa's remarks. Japanese outlet Eiga Natalie, carried by Yahoo Japan, reported that they came at a press event where the Japan Actors Union announced guidelines on AI voice use, calling for the purpose to be stated and performers' permission obtained at the stages of AI training, generation and publication.
What to expect next
Watch whether Japanese studios and AI companies adopt the Japan Actors Union guidelines, and whether Japan's government moves toward formal protections for voices.
Also watch for similar statements from performers elsewhere, and whether platforms take down unauthorized AI videos that use famous voices like Nozawa's after this attention. The reaction of other veteran voice actors in Japan and of anime studios that hire them will show whether this becomes an industry standard.