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AI Voice Theft Costs 750,000 Yuan: Shanghai Court Rules Against Genshin Impact Cloner

Shanghai Court Delivers Landmark Ruling in AI Voice Cloning Case

In a decision that could reshape how AI companies handle voice data, the Pudong New Area People's Court in Shanghai has ruled against an AI voice-changing software operator for cloning character voices from the popular game Genshin Impact. The court ordered the defendant to pay miHoYo, the game's developer, 750,000 yuan in compensation and to immediately cease the unfair competition practices. This marks Shanghai's first case involving AI voice impersonation and unfair competition.

How the Voice Theft Unfolded

Back in 2025, miHoYo discovered that an AI voice-changing app was offering 63 voice resource packages based on Genshin Impact characters. Users could pay to have their own voices transformed into those of the game's heroes. The software also made liberal use of the game's character images. miHoYo argued that this service would confuse listeners—"no matter what is said, it would be converted into the specific voice and tone of a particular character," creating a false association with the game.

The defendant tried to defend itself by claiming that the voice-changing effects were the result of AI large model training and varied from person to person. They also argued that voice rights belonged to the voice actors, not miHoYo, so the game company had no standing to sue.

But a key piece of evidence turned the tide: a voiceprint forensic appraisal concluded that the AI-generated voices were "tended to identify as the same" as the original game characters' voices. Even more damning, the defendant admitted during trial that they had used one-minute audio clips of Genshin Impact characters without permission, mixed with other sound materials, to train their AI model.

Why the Court Sided with miHoYo

Judge Xu Hongtao from the Intellectual Property Trial Division of the Pudong People's Court explained the legal reasoning: "In the game, the voice characteristics of a character are more determined by specific elements such as the character's preset attributes and skills, rather than being left to the personalized performance of the voice actor." In other words, a game character's voice is a commercial identifier—it tells consumers where the product comes from. The defendant's unauthorized use of that identifier constituted unfair competition.

A New Legal Landscape for AI and Voice Rights

The ruling comes just days after the Supreme People's Court issued its "Opinions on Legally Adjudicating Cases Involving Artificial Intelligence" on September 7, 2026. This is China's first judicial document specifically addressing AI-related disputes. The Opinions state that unless otherwise provided by law, using a natural person's voice as training material without consent—and generating synthetic voices that can identify that person—will be considered an infringement of voice rights. The court will support such claims.

This means AI voice cloning is no longer a legal gray area. Companies that scrape voices without permission now face clear legal consequences.

Key Points

  • Shanghai's first AI voice impersonation case ends with a 750,000 yuan compensation order against an AI voice-changing app operator.
  • miHoYo sued after discovering 63 Genshin Impact character voice packages were offered for paid voice conversion.
  • Voiceprint forensic evidence showed the AI voices were "tended to identify as the same" as the originals, and the defendant admitted to unauthorized training.
  • The court ruled that game character voices are commercial identifiers, making the unauthorized use unfair competition.
  • The Supreme People's Court's new AI Opinions (effective September 7, 2026) clarify that voice cloning without consent infringes voice rights, ending the legal gray area.