Cate Blanchett launches free tool to help people protect identity from AI

Cate Blanchett is pursuing her crusade against unregulated usage of artificial intelligence. On Tuesday, the Australian actor and producer launched a free website allowing anyone to protect their identity from being used by AI systems.The star presented the Human Consent Registry at an event hosted at the European Parliament in Brussels by Bulgarian MEP Eva Maydell, also attended by director Steven Soderbergh.“Your identity is your IP in the age of AI, and every person deserves the right to decide how AI can or cannot use it,” said Blanchett, who co-founded RSL Media, a nonprofit working to build consent tools related to AI use.The organisation’s new registry provides users with the possibility to allow - with or without terms - or prohibit AI use of their name, image, voice, likeness and movement among other personal attributes.The tool is available to all individuals as well as third parties like agents and managers. It should eventually allow people to protect their works of arts, characters or brands, RSL media said in a statement.European People’s Party lawmaker Eva Maydell described the Human Consent Registry as “a tool that makes rights transparent, scales trust, and keeps human creativity at the centre of technological progress.”Cate Blanchett’s registry is just the latest step in the actor’s battle to address consent issue in AI usage.In March 2025, the star joined Paul McCartney, Ben Stiller and more than 400 celebrities and artists who sent an open letter to Donald Trump, urging his administration to not roll back copyright protections.The letter challenged arguments from tech giants like OpenAI and Google that US copyright law should allow AI companies to train their systems on copyrighted works without permission or compensation to rights holders.Many artists have since spoken out against unlicenced AI use of their work and likeness. On Monday, singer SZA slammed musicians supporting “this degenerate shit,” after having discovered that more than 200 of her songs had been used to train AI.Some even took drastic action, like actor Matthew McConaughey, who trademarked his image and voice, including his iconic “alright, alright, alright” catchphrase.Cate Blanchett’s launch of RSL media in May received wide support from Hollywood powerhouses including Javier Bardem, Viola Davis, Tom Hanks, Helen Mirren and Meryl Streep.“AI technologies are expanding rampantly, essentially unchecked and unregulated,” Blanchett said in a statement presenting her organisation.“In order for humans to remain in front of these technologies, consent must be the first consideration.”