After numerous cases of image manipulation and the use of artificial intelligence technology to create false content, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has taken another step to protect her identity.
The Italian Prime Minister filed with the European Union Intellectual Property Office this Monday an audio recording of about four seconds, in which she utters the phrase "I am Giorgia Meloni" twice.
The application seeks to register this material as a sound trademark, with the aim of creating an additional legal instrument against unauthorized use of the sound and its cloning through artificial intelligence. According to the documentation of the European Union Intellectual Property Office, the application is currently still under review and has not been finally approved.
If the application is approved, the protection will be tied to the filed sound mark and the relevant uses specified in the application. It does not mean that every imitation of the Prime Minister's voice will be automatically prohibited, but it could give her an additional legal basis to challenge certain unauthorized uses, including those in content created with artificial intelligence.
The registration relates to several categories of services, including downloadable multimedia content, cultural activities and the organization of political events. The application was filed through a company specializing in intellectual property.
Meloni's move comes at a time when voice cloning technologies can create highly convincing audio with only a small amount of audio material. In the case of a political figure, a fake recording could be used to create statements that the person never made, making the phenomenon particularly problematic during election periods.
Meloni has previously been the target of AI-manipulated content. In 2024, she also took legal action regarding pornographic material created with deepfakes, while speaking publicly about the risk of AI being used for deception and disinformation.
