{"meta":{"exportedAt":"2026-10-23T09:23:09.979Z","formatVersion":2,"selection":{"q":"china","system":"","harm":"","context":"","country":"","role":"","relation":"core","evidence":"","year":"2023","response":"","severity":"","verification":"","view":"incidents","sort":"added"},"totalIncidents":4,"coverage":{"cases":4,"countries":1,"languages":2,"unknownLocation":0,"locationPending":0,"unknownLanguage":0,"unknownDate":0,"lawsuits":1,"regulatory":1,"minors":0,"coreRelations":4,"contextualRelations":0,"mixedRelations":0,"unknownRelations":0,"relationPending":0,"relationUnknown":0},"countingNote":"Distinct public cases in this selection. People counts apply within individual cases only; cross-case person overlap has not been resolved. No population incidence estimate.","affectedCountNote":"Interpret person counts with affectedCountStatus and the reported effects. Unquantified zeros are placeholders, not a measured zero.","source":"AI incidents","publisher":"NOPE","url":"https://nope.net/incidents","license":"CC BY 4.0"},"incidents":[{"id":"2023-fuzhou-china-police-say-company-head-sent-4-3-million-yuan-after-ai-face-swapped-wechat-video-call-from-friend","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'4月20日11时40分左右，福州市某科技公司法人代表' and '于11时49分先后分两笔把430万元给对方打了过去。' and '对方通过智能AI换脸技术，佯装成好友对他实施了诈骗。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Baotou police said that on 20 April 2023 the legal representative of a Fuzhou technology company was contacted by WeChat video by someone posing as a friend and transferred 4.3 million yuan in two payments; when he phoned the real friend he learned the friend had made no such request, and the police said the fraudster had used AI face-swapping to impersonate the friend.","causal_attribution":"Police attribution of the deception to AI face-swapping."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'仅用时10分钟，就将该诈骗账户内的336.84万元被骗资金成功拦截' and '向福州市公安局警方提供了剩余款项93.16万元资金流出信息' and '目前，福建警方与包头警方对此资金正在全力追缴当中。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Baotou police, asked by Fuzhou police, worked with the bank to intercept 3.3684 million yuan within about ten minutes and passed information on the remaining 931,600 yuan to Fuzhou police; both forces were pursuing it.","causal_attribution":"Police account of the recovery."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'骗子并没有使用一个仿真的好友微信添加' and '而是直接用好友微信发起视频聊天' and '骗子极有可能通过技术手段盗用了'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The Shanghai Observer reported that the fraudster called from the friend's own WeChat account, which it said was very likely stolen by technical means, rather than from a lookalike account.","causal_attribution":"The outlet's inference about the account; it adds a second mechanism (account takeover) alongside the face swap."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'基于对好友的信任，加上已经视频聊天核实了身份'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The company head transferred the money because of trust in the friend and because the video chat had appeared to verify the caller's identity.","causal_attribution":"Links the video call to the decision to pay."}],"effects":[{"label":"company head deceived by an AI face-swapped video call into transferring 4.3 million yuan, according to police","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.secrss.com/articles/54863","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"zh","translation_note":"Read in Chinese on 2026-10-22 (HTTP 200). Republication of the Baotou police WeChat account post (stated as from Ping An Baotou). Translated from Chinese by the research agent (an AI); no human translation.","independence_group":"baotou-police-statement-may-2023"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.jfdaily.com/wx/detail.do?id=615158","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"zh","translation_note":"Read in Chinese on 2026-10-22 (HTTP 200). Shanghai Observer report, 22 May 2023, relaying the police statement with added reporting. Translated from Chinese by the research agent (an AI); no human translation.","independence_group":"shanghai-observer-report-may-2023"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["finance","work","relationships"],"unknowns":["Which AI tool was used and how police established the face swap.","Whether the remaining 931,600 yuan was recovered.","Whether anyone was arrested or charged.","How the friend's WeChat account came to be used."],"geography":{"basis":"Event: the victim was the legal representative of a technology company in Fuzhou, Fujian, and the case was handled by Fuzhou and Baotou police (police statement). No court proceeding is reported.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["CN"],"affected_person_countries":["CN"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (communicated_with, depicted_or_impersonated): Baotou police say a Fuzhou company head transferred 4.3 million yuan after a WeChat video call in which the fraudster used AI face-swapping to impersonate a friend. The technical basis is not disclosed. The victim is not named.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-22"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"Baotou police, who handled the interception of the funds with Fuzhou police, said the fraudster used AI face-swapping to pose as the victim's friend on the WeChat video call that led to the 4.3 million yuan transfer (police WeChat post relayed by Secrss). The faked friend spoke to the victim and asked for the money (communicated_with, depicted_or_impersonated). The police do not disclose how the face swap was established or which tool was used, and the Shanghai Observer reports the friend's real account was probably hijacked as well.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with","depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Fuzhou, China: police say a company head sent 4.3 million yuan after a WeChat video call in which AI face-swapping imitated a friend","summary":"Police in Baotou, Inner Mongolia, said in a statement published in May 2023 that on 20 April 2023 the legal representative of a technology company in Fuzhou, Fujian, received a WeChat video call from someone who appeared to be a friend and asked to route a 4.3 million yuan tender deposit through the company's account; trusting the video call, he transferred 4.3 million yuan in two payments. The police said the fraudster had used AI face-swapping to pose as the friend. At Fuzhou police's request, Baotou police and a local bank stopped 3.3684 million yuan within about ten minutes; 931,600 yuan had been moved on and was being pursued.","incidentDate":"2023-04-20","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"single_interaction","reportedDate":"2023-05-08","aiSystem":"AI face-swapping used in a WeChat video call to impersonate the victim's friend, according to Baotou police (tool not identified)","aiProduct":"Unidentified video tool","severity":"high","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["financial_loss"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to Baotou police, a Fuzhou company head transferred 4.3 million yuan after a WeChat video call with an AI face-swapped imitation of a friend; 3.3684 million yuan was intercepted and 931,600 yuan was still being pursued.","frameworkFacets":[],"pathwayDirection":"outward","causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the company head deceived into the transfers (police statement). The loss was on a company account; the impersonated friend is not counted because no harm to the friend is reported.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"CN","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"investigation_opened","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.secrss.com/articles/54863","primarySourceLabel":"Secrss (relaying the Baotou police WeChat account Ping An Baotou), 20 May 2023: AI face-swap fraud took 4.3 million yuan in 10 minutes","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-22T03:25:21.91516+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-22T03:25:21.91516+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["ai-face-swap","video-call-fraud","impersonation","wechat","china","police-statement","depicted-or-impersonated"]},{"id":"2023-anqing-anhui-police-say-nine-second-ai-face-swap-video-call-posing-as-acquaintance-cost-man-2-45-million-yuan","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'经开公安分局反诈中心民警调查发现，诈骗分子使用了一段9秒钟的智能AI换脸视频佯装“熟人”，让受害人放松警惕从而实施诈骗。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'诈骗分子使用一段9秒钟的智能AI换脸视频佯装“熟人”，让受害人放松警惕被骗走245万元。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Officers of the Anqing economic development zone police anti-fraud centre found that the fraudsters used a nine-second AI face-swap video to pose as an acquaintance and lower the victim's guard.","causal_attribution":"Police finding attributing the deception to an AI face-swap video."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'目前有一个项目招标需要周转资金' and '“因为打了视频电话又是熟人”，“我就没多想，就转账了”' and '立刻让家人将245万元到对方指定的账号上，直到事后拨打对方电话才得知被骗。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"After the brief video call, the 'acquaintance' asked on QQ for money to be advanced for a project tender, and, trusting the video call, the victim had family members transfer 2.45 million yuan, learning of the fraud only when he later phoned the acquaintance.","causal_attribution":"The victim's account of why he paid, as reported."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'于4月28日下午一举抓获' and '等3名犯罪嫌疑人，扣押涉案手机26部，冻结、追回电诈资金一百余万元。' and '5月22日，民警将先行追回的132万元被骗款返还给' and '目前，该案件正在进一步侦办中。'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Police arrested three suspects on 28 April 2023, seized 26 phones, froze or recovered more than one million yuan, and on 22 May returned 1.32 million yuan to the victim; the case was still being investigated.","causal_attribution":"Police account of arrests and recovery."}],"effects":[{"label":"man transferred 2.45 million yuan after an AI face-swap video call posing as an acquaintance, according to police","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.secrss.com/articles/55024","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"zh","translation_note":"Read in Chinese on 2026-10-22 (HTTP 200). Republication of a Dawan News report (stated as from Dawan News), dated 25 May 2023. Translated from Chinese by the research agent (an AI); no human translation.","independence_group":"anqing-police-findings-dawan-news-may-2023"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://news.cnr.cn/native/gd/20230613/t20230613_526286531.shtml","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"zh","translation_note":"Read in Chinese on 2026-10-22 (HTTP 200; page encoded GBK). China National Radio summary, 13 June 2023, of the same case. Translated from Chinese by the research agent (an AI); no human translation.","independence_group":"anqing-police-findings-dawan-news-may-2023"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["finance","relationships"],"unknowns":["Which AI tool was used and how police established the face swap.","Whether the remaining money was recovered.","Whether the three suspects, who were suspected of moving proceeds, or anyone who made the video was charged or convicted.","How the acquaintance's WeChat identity was used."],"geography":{"basis":"Event: the case occurred in the Anqing economic development zone, Anhui, and was handled by its police sub-bureau (Dawan News; CNR). No court proceeding is reported.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["CN"],"affected_person_countries":["CN"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (communicated_with, depicted_or_impersonated): the investigating Anqing police anti-fraud centre found that a nine-second AI face-swap video posing as an acquaintance led a man to transfer 2.45 million yuan. The technical basis is not disclosed. The victim is not named.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-22"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The anti-fraud centre of the Anqing economic development zone police, which investigated the case and arrested three suspects, found that the fraudsters used a nine-second AI face-swap video to pose as the victim's acquaintance on the WeChat video call that preceded the payment (Dawan News via Secrss; CNR). The faked acquaintance appeared to the victim, and the same account then asked for money (depicted_or_impersonated, communicated_with). The police do not disclose how the face swap was established or which tool was used.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["communicated_with","depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Anqing, China: police say a nine-second AI face-swap video call posing as an acquaintance led a man to transfer 2.45 million yuan","summary":"In April 2023 a man in the Anqing economic development zone, Anhui, received a brief WeChat video call from someone who appeared to be an acquaintance, followed by a QQ message asking him to advance money for a tender; trusting the video call, he had family members transfer 2.45 million yuan. The local police anti-fraud centre found that the fraudsters had used a nine-second AI face-swap video to pose as the acquaintance, Dawan News reported. Police arrested three suspects on 28 April, froze or recovered more than one million yuan, and on 22 May returned 1.32 million yuan to the victim.","incidentDate":"2023-04-27","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"day","exposurePattern":"single_interaction","reportedDate":"2023-05-25","aiSystem":"A nine-second AI face-swap video used in a WeChat video call to impersonate an acquaintance, according to police (tool not identified)","aiProduct":"Unidentified video tool","severity":"high","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["financial_loss"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to the police findings reported by Dawan News, a man transferred 2.45 million yuan after a nine-second AI face-swap video call posing as an acquaintance; 1.32 million yuan was later returned to him.","frameworkFacets":[],"pathwayDirection":"outward","causationStatus":"supported","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person: the man who had 2.45 million yuan transferred after the call (Dawan News via Secrss). The impersonated acquaintance and the family members who made the transfer are not counted; no separate harm to them is reported.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"CN","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"criminal_charges","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.secrss.com/articles/55024","primarySourceLabel":"Secrss (republishing Dawan News), 25 May 2023: Another AI face-swap fraud as Anhui man loses 2.45 million yuan in 9 seconds","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-22T03:25:18.240597+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-22T03:25:18.240597+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["ai-face-swap","video-call-fraud","impersonation","wechat","china","police-arrests","depicted-or-impersonated"]},{"id":"2023-beijing-voice-actress-ai-text-to-speech-voice-from-her-recordings-sold-without-consent-court-awards-250000-yuan","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'发现他人利用其配音制作的作品在多个知名APP广泛流传。经声音筛选和溯源，发现上述作品中的声音来自于被告一北京某智能科技公司运营平台中的文本转语音产品'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"In May 2023 the voice actress found that works using her voice were circulating widely on several well-known apps and traced the voice to a text-to-speech product on an app operator's platform.","causal_attribution":"Court account of the claimant's discovery."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'录制的一部录音制品作为素材，采用人工智能等技术进行处理，生成了案涉文本转语音产品，并在被告四上海某网络科技公司运营的云服务平台对外出售'; '《数据授权书》并非'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'进行AI化处理'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The court found that a software company used only one of her sound recordings, supplied by a media company, as material, processed it with AI and other techniques into a text-to-speech product, and sold it on a cloud-service platform; the authorisation document had not been signed by her.","causal_attribution":"Court findings as relayed; the judgment was not inspected."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'采取应用程序接口形式，在未经技术处理的情况下，直接调取并生成文本转语音产品在其平台中使用。平台显示案涉声音播放量为3256728530次'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'相关配音作品的播放量高达32亿余次'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"An app operator called the product through an interface for use on its platform, which showed the voice as played 3,256,728,530 times.","causal_attribution":"Court findings as relayed."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'现场使用案涉文本转语音产品进行文本转语音的操作，获得的AI声音与'; '的音色、语调、发音风格等具有高度一致性'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'庭审现场，法官当庭勘验：AI产品生成的语音，与'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s4"}],"assertion":"At the hearing the court used the product and found the AI voice highly consistent with the voice actress's timbre, intonation and pronunciation style.","causal_attribution":"The court's own inspection as relayed by the court account."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'北京互联网法院于2024年4月23日作出（2023）京0491民初12142号民事判决'; '经济损失人民币250000元'; '宣判后，双方当事人未提出上诉，判决已发生法律效力'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'4月23日，北京互联网法院一审开庭宣判了全国首例AI生成声音人格权侵权案'; '赔偿损失25万元'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'原告获赔经济损失25万元'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"On 23 April 2024 the Beijing Internet Court ordered written apologies and 250,000 yuan for economic loss, rejected her other claims, and the judgment took effect without appeal.","causal_attribution":"Court outcome as relayed by the court account and reports of it."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'并未举证证明被诉侵权行为给其精神利益造成严重损害，因此，对其精神损害赔偿请求不予支持'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The court rejected the claim for mental-harm damages because she had not shown that the infringement seriously harmed her mental interests.","causal_attribution":"Court reasoning as relayed; recorded as a limit on the harm."},{"id":"c7","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'一审审理过程中，被告一北京某智能科技公司、被告三某软件公司下架了案涉文本转语音产品'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The app operator and the software company took the text-to-speech product down during the first-instance proceedings.","causal_attribution":"Court account."}],"effects":[{"label":"court found a voice actress's voice rights infringed by an AI text-to-speech voice made from her recording and sold without her consent","claim_id":"c5","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://xinwen.bjd.com.cn/content/s6867e681d5ded84697eedca5.html","kind":"court_record","access":"read","language":"zh","translation_note":"Read in the original Chinese on 2026-10-22 (HTTP 200). English renderings in this record are the research agent's (an AI's) own translations; no human translator reviewed them. Case digest published by the Beijing courts' \"Jing Fa Wang Shi\" account on Beijing Daily's platform; the judgment itself was not inspected.","independence_group":"beijing-internet-court-account"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.jfdaily.com/wx/detail.do?id=741827","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"zh","translation_note":"Read in the original Chinese on 2026-10-22 (HTTP 200). English renderings in this record are the research agent's (an AI's) own translations; no human translator reviewed them. Relays the Beijing Internet Court's announcement of the judgment.","independence_group":"beijing-internet-court-account"},{"id":"s3","url":"http://paper.people.com.cn/zgcsb/html/2024-04/29/content_26055200.htm","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"zh","translation_note":"Read in the original Chinese on 2026-10-22 (HTTP 200). English renderings in this record are the research agent's (an AI's) own translations; no human translator reviewed them. Commentary in China City News (People's Daily group) relaying the same court account.","independence_group":"beijing-internet-court-account"},{"id":"s4","url":"https://xinwen.bjd.com.cn/content/s6ad969cce4b0e42f8f01e464.html","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"zh","translation_note":"Read in the original Chinese on 2026-10-22 (HTTP 200). English renderings in this record are the research agent's (an AI's) own translations; no human translator reviewed them. Feature on the Beijing Internet Court quoting its judges; it restates the case.","independence_group":"beijing-internet-court-account"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["work","privacy","justice"],"unknowns":["When the software company first sold the product and when the app operator began using it.","Which apps and works used the voice; the sources give only a playback count shown on the operator's platform.","How the 250,000-yuan figure was calculated beyond the court's general factors.","Where the voice actress lives."],"geography":{"basis":"The case digest describes Beijing and Shanghai companies selling and using the product on a Chinese cloud platform and app, and the case was decided by the Beijing Internet Court, so the event is placed in China. The sources do not say where the voice actress lives, so no affected-person country is recorded.","court_countries":["CN"],"event_countries":["CN"],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a core case (depicted_or_impersonated): the Beijing Internet Court found that an AI text-to-speech voice made from a voice actress's recording imitated her identifiably and was sold and used without her consent, and awarded 250,000 yuan. One reporting chain, the court's own account, read in four Chinese sources.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-22"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"In the court's account a software company processed the voice actress's recording with AI and other techniques to generate a text-to-speech voice, and at the hearing the court used the product and found the generated voice highly consistent with hers. The AI-generated voice imitated her voice in works heard on apps (depicted_or_impersonated); the court held that this use without her consent infringed her voice rights and awarded damages.","status":"supported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Beijing Internet Court finds an AI text-to-speech voice made from a voice actress's recordings was sold without her consent and awards her 250,000 yuan","summary":"According to the Beijing courts' case digest and reports of the April 2024 judgment, a voice actress found in May 2023 that works using her voice were circulating widely on several well-known apps. The court found that a software company had used only one of her sound recordings, supplied by a media company that held the recording rights, to make a text-to-speech product with AI and other techniques, and sold it on a cloud-service platform; an app operator then called the product through an interface for use on its own platform, where the voice was shown as played 3,256,728,530 times. The authorisation document had not been signed by her. On 23 April 2024 the Beijing Internet Court held that her voice rights extend to an identifiable AI-synthesised voice, ordered the app operator and the software company to apologise in writing, and ordered the media company and the software company to pay her 250,000 yuan for economic loss. It rejected her claim for mental-harm damages. Neither side appealed.","incidentDate":"2023-05-01","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"month","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2024-04-24","aiSystem":"A text-to-speech voice product that a software company made by processing one of the voice actress's sound recordings with AI and other techniques, sold on a cloud-service platform and called by an app operator for use on its platform (product names not recorded here)","aiProduct":"Unidentified voice-cloning tool","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["financial_loss"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to the Beijing courts' account, an AI text-to-speech voice made from a voice actress's recording without her consent was sold and widely used, and the court found her voice rights infringed and awarded 250,000 yuan for economic loss.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"established","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person, the voice actress who sued (Beijing courts' case digest and reports of the judgment). Exact 1.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"CN","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"lawsuit_filed","outcomeStatus":"resolved","primarySourceUrl":"https://xinwen.bjd.com.cn/content/s6867e681d5ded84697eedca5.html","primarySourceLabel":"Beijing courts' case digest via Beijing Daily, 4 July 2025: AI-processed voice protected by voice rights","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-22T03:08:01.07425+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-22T03:08:01.07425+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["voice-cloning","voice-rights","text-to-speech","court-ruling","beijing","china","depicted-or-impersonated"]},{"id":"2023-china-voice-actor-says-ai-clones-of-his-voice-cost-him-bookings-and-led-platforms-to-flag-his-real-recordings","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"The first warning came in 2023, when a friend sent him a four-minute video introducing a Chinese actress in a voice that sounded like his.; hears what sounds like his voice narrating movie explainers he never recorded, reading sports news, promoting products, peddling conspiracy theories, and even swearing in short videos circulating online.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"A voice actor who narrates film-explainer videos on Douyin says that since 2023 voices that sound like his have narrated videos he never recorded, including movie explainers, sports news, product promotions, conspiracy theories and swearing.","causal_attribution":"The actor's account relayed by Sixth Tone; the resemblance is his and his acquaintances' identification."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"he has found sellers offering what sounds like his voice in downloadable packages, as well as editing apps that allow users to select it and generate new recordings.; In one livestream, a presenter demonstrated an app that could generate voiceovers from text in a few clicks. Using a demo voice that sounded strikingly similar to his, the presenter turned a script into a movie explainer narration","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Sixth Tone reports that the actor has found sellers offering what sounds like his voice in downloadable packages and editing apps that let users select that voice and generate new recordings, and describes a livestream in which a presenter used a demo voice strikingly similar to his to turn a script into a movie-explainer narration.","causal_attribution":"Sixth Tone's account. The tools described generate speech from text, which establishes AI generation; that the generated voice was derived from his recordings has not been forensically established."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Then the bookings began to fall.; By 2024, former collaborators stopped hiring him and turned to AI-generated voices instead. Others offered to use an AI version of his voice at a much lower rate.; Their income no longer covered their living costs","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The actor says that by 2024 former collaborators stopped hiring him and turned to AI-generated voices, others offered to use an AI version of his voice at a much lower rate, and his household income no longer covered living costs.","causal_attribution":"The actor's account relayed by Sixth Tone; no client is named and the share of lost work due to clones of his voice, as against AI voices generally, is not stated."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"For his clients, a mistaken label can mean fewer recommendations, fewer views, and less income.; When platforms flagged his recordings as AI-generated, the videos could be excluded from recommendation feeds, cutting views and earnings.; the more often he has to prove that his own recordings are real.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"From 2025 platforms flagged some of his real recordings as AI-generated, which could exclude videos from recommendation feeds and cut views and earnings for his clients; he has had to record videos proving that he is human.","causal_attribution":"Sixth Tone's account; how the platforms decided to flag the recordings is not described, and one platform agent is quoted assuming the voice was AI because it was so common."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"sometimes asking to borrow money; A few removed their videos; most ignored him. Others responded with abuse.; I go through the same cycle,; First fury, then helplessness, and finally disappointment.; has struggled to sleep and has begun smoking more","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"Friends and relatives who sent him the clips sometimes asked to borrow money on the assumption that he had become rich, uploaders he contacted mostly ignored him and some responded with abuse, and he describes repeated fury and helplessness at hearing the AI version and has struggled to sleep.","causal_attribution":"The actor's account relayed by Sixth Tone; no clinical assessment is reported."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"the defendant sought to transfer the case to a court in another city.; To succeed, he would first need to establish a clear chain of evidence showing that the synthetic voice was derived from his recordings.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"He took the matter to court; before the first hearing set for 2 July the defendant sought to transfer the case to a court in another city, and Sixth Tone says he would first need to show that the synthetic voice was derived from his recordings.","causal_attribution":"Sixth Tone's account; the defendant, the court and the claims are not identified."}],"effects":[{"label":"lost bookings and income attributed by the actor to AI clones of his voice","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"},{"label":"real recordings flagged as AI-generated, cutting clients' reach","claim_id":"c4","direction":"negative"},{"label":"distress, lost sleep, abuse and money requests linked to the clips","claim_id":"c5","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.sixthtone.com/news/1018753/the-chinese-voice-actor-forced-to-prove-he%E2%80%99s-human","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"English feature of 10 July 2026 read in full on 2026-10-22 by the research agent (an AI) (HTTP 200); no translation required. Sixth Tone interviewed the actor and his wife, visited him and quotes lawyers; Chinese-language originals were not looked for.","independence_group":"sixthtone-voice-actor-feature"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["others_use"],"contexts":["work"],"unknowns":["Which tools, apps and sellers generated or sold the voice resembling his.","Whether forensic voice analysis or a court has found that the synthetic voice derives from his recordings.","How the platforms decided to flag his real recordings as AI-generated.","The defendant, court and outcome of his lawsuit.","How much of his lost work is due to clones of his voice as against AI voices in general."],"geography":{"basis":"The article places the actor's work in a Douyin film-explainer channel and describes his lost bookings in China's short-video and ultrashort-drama voice market; the court in his lawsuit is not named, so no court country is recorded.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["CN"],"affected_person_countries":[]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as an ongoing adverse experience: Sixth Tone reports that AI text-to-speech packages and apps generate recordings in a voice resembling a working voice actor's, and the actor attributes lost bookings, lower rates, platforms flagging his own recordings and distress to those clones. The account is attributed to the actor and the forensic question is recorded as open.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-22"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"Sixth Tone reports that voice packages and editing apps let users select a voice resembling the actor's and generate new recordings from text, and describes a livestream in which an app turned a script into narration in that voice. Those AI-generated recordings imitate him, and he says they led former clients to stop hiring him or offer lower rates and led platforms to flag his own recordings as AI-generated. That the generated voice derives from his recordings rests on his and acquaintances' identification; no forensic analysis is reported.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["depicted_or_impersonated"]},"name":"Chinese voice actor says AI clones of his voice cost him bookings and led platforms to flag his real recordings as AI-generated","summary":"Sixth Tone reported on 10 July 2026 that a voice actor in Jiangsu province, who narrates film-explainer videos on Douyin, has found voices that sound like his narrating videos he never recorded since 2023, including sports news, product promotions, conspiracy theories and swearing. According to the report, sellers offer what sounds like his voice in downloadable packages and editing apps let users select it and generate new recordings from text. He says that by 2024 former collaborators stopped hiring him and turned to AI-generated voices, others offered to use an AI version of his voice at a much lower rate, and his household income no longer covered living costs. From 2025, platforms flagged some of his real recordings as AI-generated, which could cut his clients' views and earnings, and he has had to record videos proving that he is human. Friends and relatives asked to borrow money, uploaders mostly ignored his requests and some abused him, and he describes fury, helplessness and lost sleep. He has taken the matter to court; Sixth Tone says he would need to show that the synthetic voice derives from his recordings, which lawyers said could require forensic voice analysis. The account is the actor's, relayed by one outlet; no court finding is reported.","incidentDate":"2023-01-01","incidentKind":"ongoing_experience","incidentDatePrecision":"year","exposurePattern":"repeated_interactions","reportedDate":"2026-07-10","aiSystem":"Unidentified AI voice-cloning and text-to-speech tools, including downloadable voice packages and editing apps that let users select a voice resembling the actor's and generate new recordings","aiProduct":"Unidentified voice-cloning tool","severity":"medium","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["professional_harm","financial_loss","psychological_distress"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"The actor says AI clones of his voice led former clients to stop hiring him or offer lower rates, cut household income below living costs, led platforms to flag his real recordings as AI-generated, and caused fury, helplessness and lost sleep (his account relayed by Sixth Tone).","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One voice actor whose voice is reported cloned. His wife's work on the complaints and other voice workers in the article are not counted: the wife's harm is not separately reported as caused by clones of her voice, and the other workers describe different events.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"CN","platformType":"other","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.sixthtone.com/news/1018753/the-chinese-voice-actor-forced-to-prove-he%E2%80%99s-human","primarySourceLabel":"Sixth Tone, 10 July 2026: The Chinese Voice Actor Forced to Prove He’s Human","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-22T03:04:58.68553+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-22T03:04:58.68553+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["voice-cloning","voice-actor","livelihood","workplace-ai"]}]}