Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party is advocating for stricter controls on artificial intelligence, addressing rising fears over deepfakes, copyright violations, and national competitiveness, as existing laws face calls for clearer enforcement and stronger sanctions.
Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party is pushing for tougher controls on artificial intelligence as concern builds in Tokyo over deepfakes, copyright abuse and the weakness of current enforcement. According to UPI, the party’s AI and Web3 panel wants the government to consider penalties for firms that ignore rules under Japan’s AI framework, arguing that the existing system does not give authorities enough leverage when operators refuse to provide information or fail to deal with harmful outputs.
The debate comes only months after Japan introduced the Act on Promotion of Research and Development, and Utilization of Artificial Intelligence-related Technology in September 2025. That law was designed to support AI development while giving the state powers to investigate cases where the technology may infringe people’s rights. The LDP panel now wants those powers backed by clearer sanctions, together with stronger transparency requirements on how AI systems are trained and how companies prevent or correct problematic results.
Copyright concerns have sharpened after a series of disputes involving OpenAI’s Sora 2 service. Japanese media reported in October that the government asked OpenAI to adopt an opt-in model for copyright holders, rather than relying on later objections, while officials also urged stronger technical safeguards to stop anime, game and manga characters from being reproduced without permission. Several reports said ministers described such characters as national cultural assets, and warned that voluntary compliance may not be enough if infringements continue.
The pressure has since spread beyond the government. In November, the Content Overseas Distribution Association, which represents dozens of Japanese firms including major publishers and entertainment groups, demanded that OpenAI stop using their intellectual property for training unless it had prior consent. Separate reports said publishing houses including Kodansha, Shogakukan, Shueisha and Kadokawa threatened legal action, underscoring how Japan’s AI policy is increasingly being shaped by the fear that creative industries could be exposed to large-scale unauthorised copying. At the same time, the LDP panel said Japan must also strengthen its own AI base, including through self-driving vehicles, domestic semiconductors and special zones for robotics, to keep the country competitive.
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Source: Noah Wire Services