Polish voice actor sues for unauthorized AI-generated voice in advertisement

What happened

Jarosław Łukomski, a Polish voice actor, discovered his voice had been used in an online advertisement for a domestic sewage treatment system without his consent. The voice in the advertisement was generated and synthesized by artificial intelligence to replicate Łukomski's voice, a technique known as a voice deepfake.

Łukomski stated he felt violated, describing the experience as if someone had broken into his identity and robbed him of something immaterial but significant. He filed a lawsuit against the company that created the advertisement, seeking both compensation for lost earnings and damages for violation of his personal rights.

Reported impact

Łukomski claimed he was unlawfully deprived of compensation he would have received if he had actually performed the advertisement voice work. His personal rights were violated through unauthorized use of his distinctive voice.

Index analysis

This case is Poland's first lawsuit involving unauthorized AI-generated voice use in commercial advertising. Legal experts noted that although Poland lacks specific AI legislation, protections for individuals can be derived from existing laws including the civil code, criminal code, copyright law, and unfair competition statutes.

Łukomski's legal representatives argued that the absence of dedicated AI regulation does not create a regulatory void, and that existing legal frameworks adequately address the unauthorized creation and commercial exploitation of synthetic voices.

Governance controls

The defendant company's legal position rested on the argument that artificial intelligence is unregulated under Polish law and therefore the lawsuit lacks legal foundation. Łukomski's representatives rejected this position as absurd, arguing that protection can be derived from higher-order legal norms even in the absence of specific AI legislation.

Classification

Organizations

Jarosław Łukomski (plaintiff), Sąd Okręgowy w Warszawie (mentioned)

Category

Intellectual property and appropriation

Industry

Media, social platforms and marketing

Country

Poland

Harm status

Actual harm

Intent

Intentional

Timing

Unknown

Harm types

Economic or property, Human or fundamental rights

Harmed

Workers

Failure modes

Voice clone

Consequences

Litigation

AI systems

Voice synthesis AI

Regulations

GDPR (cited)

Sources and evidence