Lipsmatch Rules for AI dubbing
Updated
Is AI dubbing legal?
What India, the EU and YouTube ask of a dub, who must approve it, and 5 checks before you publish. General information, not legal advice.
The short answer
In most cases, yes. In India and the EU, you need the rights to the video and the speaker's approval. The new rules are about labels. India's label rule for lifelike AI video started on 20 February 2026. The EU rule for deepfakes started on 2 August 2026.
A brand's own film, matched in Malayalam
Britannia owns this 50-50 Golmaal film. The brand gave us its own Malayalam dub. The campaign ran in IPL primetime. Tap Original to hear that dub while the mouth still speaks Hindi. Then tap Lipsmatch to see the mouth match every Malayalam word.
The 3 questions every rule asks
AI dubbing is allowed in India and the EU. The rules look at how you use it. They ask 3 questions. Do you hold the rights to the footage? Did the person on screen approve the use of their voice and face? Do viewers know that AI changed the video?
A brand that dubs its own ad, with the approval of the person in it, can answer yes to all 3. The court order in this guide was about a different case. Others copied a famous singer's voice without his permission.
A lawyer can check how these rules apply to your video and your markets.
The rules at a glance
6 rules, rulings and contracts apply to AI dubbing. 1 of them starts at the end of 2026.
| Question | Who it covers | What it asks for | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| India, IT Amendment Rules 2026 | Platforms, and users who post on social media | A clear label and a traceable tag on lifelike AI-altered media | In force since 20 February 2026 |
| India, ASCI guidelines on AI in ads | Advertisers in India | Approval for any real voice or likeness, and a label for some uses, such as a recreated voice in personalised messages | Final, published September 2026. Applies from the end of 2026 |
| Bombay High Court order, July 2024 | The parties named in the suit, and a precedent for others | The singer's permission before anyone copies his voice, including with AI tools | Temporary order |
| EU AI Act, Article 50 | Businesses that use AI to make deepfakes seen in the EU | A clear disclosure, no later than when people first see it | Applies since 2 August 2026 |
| YouTube disclosure policy | Creators on YouTube | A label when a real person seems to say or do something they did not | In force |
| SAG-AFTRA commercials contracts | US union performers in ads | 48 hours' notice and written approval for a digital replica | Agreed in 2025 |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
India: the IT rules on synthetic content
India's IT rules now cover what they call synthetically generated information. That means audio or video that a computer made or changed so that it looks real. The government published the change on 10 February 2026. It took effect on 20 February 2026.
Most duties fall on platforms. They must label synthetic content so that viewers see it at once. They must also add a permanent tag with a unique ID. The tag shows which system made or changed the file. Platforms must not let anyone remove the label or the tag. They must act on some lawful orders within 3 hours.
Users have one duty too. Before a post goes live, a social media platform must ask you to declare any AI content. The platform then checks your answer with automated tools.
The rule does not cover routine editing, formatting or technical fixes. It does not say where a lip-matched dub falls. A recreated voice and a changed mouth make speech look real. So plan to declare the dub, and expect a label on Indian platforms.
Voice rights in India: what the courts say
Indian courts protect personality rights. These cover the name, face and voice that the public knows a person by. Using them needs that person's permission.
A well-known playback singer took this to the Bombay High Court. In July 2024, the court gave a temporary order in his favour. It stopped several parties from using his name, voice and likeness without his permission. The order also covered AI tools that copy a voice. WIPO Magazine called it a precedent for personality rights.
For a dub, ask the speaker for written approval that names each language and each use of the recreated voice. Famous voices need the most care: actors, brand ambassadors and public figures.
Ads in India: ASCI's rules on AI
ASCI, India's advertising self-regulator, published its final guidelines on AI in ads in September 2026. They apply 3 months after publication, so from the end of 2026. They sort AI uses into 3 groups. A label is needed when the AI part shapes what people believe about the product, and leaving the label out would mislead them.
- Not allowed, even with a label. For example, fake endorsements, misleading claims, and deepfakes or a person's likeness used without their permission. Lifelike AI made with the person's approval is allowed, under the label rules below.
- Label required. For example, AI influencers and ambassadors, and a real person's voice or likeness recreated for personalised messages, even when that person has agreed.
- No label. For example, small edits such as colour correction and noise reduction. Also content made to help people who cannot hear or see well, such as subtitles, captions and translations.
- Dubbing is not named. A lip-matched dub changes the picture as well as the sound. So do not assume that the exemption for translations covers it. Ask your lawyer. When a label is needed, ASCI gives examples such as "Video created using AI" and "Video enhanced using AI".
The EU: Article 50 of the AI Act
From 2 August 2026, the EU AI Act asks for a disclosure on deepfakes. The Act defines a deepfake as image, audio or video that AI made or changed. It looks like real people, places or events, and viewers can wrongly take it as real.
The duty is on deployers. A deployer is a person or a business that uses an AI tool for work. The rule does not cover personal use.
The disclosure must be clear. People must get it no later than the first time they see the content. For clear art, satire or fiction, a lighter disclosure is enough. It must not spoil the viewing.
YouTube, Instagram and platform labels
YouTube's rule asks one question. Does the video show a real person saying or doing something that did not happen? If it does, the creator must disclose it. The same help page names one dubbing use that needs no label. That is AI that recreates your own voice for a voice-over or a dub.
One case is still open. The page does not say if a lip match of your own mouth needs the label. If you are not sure, add the label.
Some platforms label their own AI dubs too.
If you publish a Lipsmatch version, you add the label. Look for the AI question on the upload form of each platform. Answer it for every language.
Who needs to approve a dub
Check these 5 before the work starts.
- The owner of the footage. This is usually the brand, producer or channel that paid for the shoot. A dub is a new version of their work, so it needs their permission.
- The person on screen. They approve the recreated voice and the changed mouth. TED, for example, publishes each AI-dubbed talk only with the speaker's permission.
- Talent contracts and unions. Many contracts limit where and for how long a face can appear. US union actors in ads have extra terms. Since 2025, SAG-AFTRA commercials contracts ask for 48 hours' notice and written approval before anyone makes or uses a digital replica.
- The event that filmed it. If a conference or a publisher recorded the talk, the recording can belong to them. Read the recording agreement before you dub it.
- Music and stock licences. The licence for music or a stock clip often covers set markets only. A new language can mean a new market.
A checklist before you publish an AI dub
Run these 5 checks on every video before it goes out in a new language.
Checklist
Confirm the footage rights
Make sure that you own the video, or hold a licence that covers new languages and new markets.
Get written approval
The approval names the languages, markets, uses and time period. It covers the recreated voice and the changed mouth.
Approve every script
The speaker or their team approves each translation first. Then the dub says what they meant to say.
Add labels where needed
Use the AI label of each platform. If a law or a policy asks for it, also add a line to the description.
Keep the records
Keep the approvals, the approved scripts and the final files in one place. Then you can show who approved what.
When the speaker says no
A recreated voice needs a yes from the speaker. If you cannot get one, you can use 3 other methods.
Subtitles keep the speaker's own voice and face on screen. Because nothing about the speaker changes, you need fewer approvals. You still need the rights to the footage. Subtitles suit archive films and speakers you cannot reach.
A narrator's voice-over works for documentaries and training films. A different voice speaks over the original, so nobody mistakes it for the speaker.
Live interpretation suits a live event. An interpreter speaks while the speaker talks.
Our table of subtitles, voice-over and dubbing shows where each one fits.
How Lipsmatch works with your approvals
Lipsmatch starts once your approvals are in place. We work only with the approvals you already have for the voice and face on screen.
If you have a finished dub from any studio, send it. We change the mouth to fit each word, frame by frame. We can also make the dub. We translate the script you already have into each language and check every line. Our technology recreates the speaker's voice. That voice reads the approved translation the way the speaker said the original. Last, we match the mouth to it.
Your reviewer can approve each translated script before we make the voice. That covers step 3 of the checklist above. Our team checks every finished version before you get it.
Each language comes as a separate video file. So you choose the platform, the label and the date for each one. On YouTube, each one is a new upload, on a language channel or in a playlist. A multi-language audio track there changes only the sound. The mouth on screen still speaks the first language.
For aired campaigns, we matched mouths in 12 languages, across 75+ broadcast masters. Teams that publish often can use a monthly plan. Agencies can work with us as partners.
AI dubbing rules questions
Does a lip-synced dub count as a deepfake in the EU?
It can. The EU AI Act calls AI-changed video a deepfake when it shows real people and can pass as real. A lifelike dub of a real speaker can meet that test. You must disclose it even when the speaker approved the dub. For clearly creative work, such as a film, a lighter disclosure is enough. It must not spoil the viewing.
Is AI voice cloning legal in India?
Yes, with the person's permission. Indian courts treat a known voice as part of a person's personality rights. In July 2024, the Bombay High Court stopped several parties from copying a playback singer's voice with AI tools without his approval. So get the speaker's written approval first. Then follow India's label rules for lifelike AI video.
Does the EU AI Act apply to an Indian company?
It can. The Act covers deployers outside the EU when their AI output is used in the EU. If an Indian brand runs a dubbed ad for viewers in Europe, the ad needs the Article 50 disclosure. That rule applies from 2 August 2026. If the video runs only in India, follow India's IT rules and the policy of each platform.
The event filmed my talk. Who owns the rights to dub it?
The recording agreement decides. The event can own the recording, or share the rights with you. If the event owns it, get its written permission for dubbed versions. Agree with the event where those versions can run. As the speaker, you then approve your own recreated voice and the changed mouth.
What goes in a voice approval form?
The form names the person, the video and the languages. It says where the dubbed versions run and for how long. It says that AI recreates the voice and changes the mouth to match. It names who approves each script. It also says how the person can withdraw approval for future uses. A lawyer can turn these points into a contract.
Do I need a lawyer to dub my videos?
It depends on the video. If you own the video and you are the speaker, the label rules of each platform can be enough. Ads with paid talent, films and union performers need more care. So do new countries. In these cases, ask a lawyer to check the contracts first. These rules changed in 2026, so check them again before each campaign.
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Then send us the video and your languages
Send one scene. We send it back in your language, with the mouth matched, at no cost and with no commitment. You then publish each version with the labels your markets ask for.