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August 11, 2026
 

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VOICE ACTING

An expert panel at the Justice Ministry on Monday discusses civil liability for the unauthorized use of celebrities' voices and likenesses.
JAPAN
Jul 28, 2026
Panel backs civil liability for unauthorized AI use of public figures¡¯ voices
Draft report says voices would be protected under the right of publicity, which allows celebrities to control the commercial value of their names and portraits.
Damage caused by the use of generative AI is becoming a serious concern, including from "AI covers," in which people have AI tools learn the voices of singers and voice actors, then sing songs using the professionals' voices.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 14, 2026
Japan aims to protect image and voice rights from generative AI use
Many things remain unclear regarding what constitutes the illegal use of voices, as no Japanese court ruling has been issued on related rights.
A popular voice actor has sued TikTok¡¯s operator over videos allegedly using an AI-generated imitation of his voice without permission.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 26, 2026
Actor files lawsuit against TikTok operator over AI-generated voice use
The lawsuit, filed with the Tokyo District Court by Kenjiro Tsuda last November,?is believed to be the first of its kind in Japan.
A synchronous speaker stands in a dubbing studio in Munich. The rise of AI raises the question of whether voice dubbing actors will be needed in the future.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 1, 2025
Voice actors push back as AI threatens dubbing industry
As AI-generated voices become more sophisticated and cost-effective, voice actor industry associations are calling for tighter regulations.
Australian singer Donna Burke in Tokyo on May 29. People comment on how familiar her voice is when footage of Burke performing shinkansen announcements go viral online.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 27, 2025
A trained star: The Australian singer who became the voice of the shinkansen
The ¡°JR voice¡± has built a career that encompasses voice work for prominent game franchises including Metal Gear Solid and Final Fantasy.
In the most recent expansion to the long-running Warframe, Alpha Takahashi voices cyborg mechanic Aoi Morohoshi.
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
Feb 15, 2025
Alpha Takahashi: ¡®The world of video games was tied to my upbringing¡¯
The Tokyo-born actor has voiced Psylocke in Marvel Rivals, Hanako Arasaka in Cyberpunk 2077 and many more since breaking into the industry in 2013.
Midori Kato has been voice acting the character Sazae Fuguta in the TV animation series "Sazae-san" since it started in 1969.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Dec 30, 2024
Still sounding young at 85, Midori Kato is the voice of old Japan
The voice actor is the last original member of the cast of ¡°Sazae-san,¡± a cartoon series that premiered in 1969 and never quite joined the modern world.
Nobuyo Oyama
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Oct 11, 2024
Long-time ¡®Doraemon¡¯ voice actor Nobuyo Oyama dies at 90
Oyama voiced the nation¡¯s beloved blue cat-robot in her own inimitable way from the time the show debuted in 1979 until 2005.
Noriko Ohara, best known for providing the voice of Nobita Nobi in the popular anime series "Doraemon," died on July 12 at 88.
JAPAN
Jul 24, 2024
Doraemon¡¯s Nobita voice actress dies at 88
Noriko Ohara served as the voice actor for Nobita, the lazy but optimistic boy looked after by robotic earless cat Doraemon, for 26 years from 1979.
SungWon Cho is a veteran with more than 10 years of experience portraying characters in anime, cartoons and video games.
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
May 19, 2024
Want to be a voice actor? Stay ¡®true to the character¡¯
¡°Most people think of just the cutscenes,¡± SungWon Cho says, ¡°but you end up voicing everything ¡ª the sounds a character makes when fighting, like battle cries, for example.¡±
Speech-generating AI works by sifting through reams of data, categorizing how people speak then using an algorithm, to replicate human vocal patterns and speech characteristics.
BUSINESS / Tech / FOCUS
Oct 23, 2023
Whose voice is it anyway? Actors take on AI copycats
Artists around the world are joining forces to protect their jobs, and their souls, from the ramifications of AI that sounds just like them.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital
Dec 3, 2022
To bestselling gaming franchises, what are voice actors worth?
When a voice actor took to Twitter to complain about low wages, it was only the beginning of a drawn-out controversy.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Oct 11, 2021
Maxwell Powers: ¡®You have to be competent, yet invisible¡¯
According to his bio, Maxwell Powers is the ¡®voice guy in Tokyo.¡¯ He explains a few of his roles and the perks of being widely heard.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Nov 10, 2018
Hidemitsu Shimizu: Realizing the full extent of vocal possibility
Narrator and voice actor Hidemitsu Shimizu on how he brings characters to life, who has the sexiest male voice and rapping about math for work.
America¡¯s cyberforces grapple with cluster of deaths by suicide
The U.S. Cyber Command building (center) stands on the National Security Agency campus at Fort Meade, Maryland.
Many Indonesians named after Japanese anime characters
Some people in Indonesia are named Doraemon, the name of a lead character of the blockbuster anime series with the same title.
Yasukuni Shrine introduces ban on military attire and cosplay
People gather in front of thousands of lanterns on display at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on July 15 during the Mitama Matsuri, one of the capital's largest summer o-Bon festivals.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
As Â鶹´«Ã½ concrete jungles sizzle, urban forestry offers an all-natural fix
People and birds find relief from the sun in Tokyo's Nakano Ward earlier this month. While experts agree that urban greening is crucial to mitigating the impact of climate change, trees are becoming even more scarce in Japanese cities.
Â鶹´«Ã½ brewers experiment with a secret ingredient: music
At Smoke Craft, a craft beer brewery in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, music isn't just a background to the brewing process ¡ª it's an ingredient.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
J. League enters new era as league kicks off first fall-spring campaign
Players from each J. League club pose during a kickoff event on Monday ahead of the start of the 2026-27 campaign.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Â鶹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness
By Alex K.T. Martin

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