AI Frontier Institute

Digital replicas.

View primary source →

Senate Bill 1111 (Ashby), signed September 30, 2026, makes two primary changes to California law regarding digital replicas. First, it amends Civil Code Section 3344 to clarify that 'voice or likeness' includes a 'digital replica,' defined as a computer-generated, highly realistic electronic representation readily identifiable as an individual's voice or visual likeness, where either the individual did not actually perform or appear, or where they did perform or appear but the fundamental character of the performance or appearance was materially altered (Section 3344.1, incorporated by reference). The bill also removes a previous rebuttable presumption that protected employers when an employee's likeness appeared incidentally in an advertisement. Second, it adds Penal Code Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 540), which clarifies that 'false impersonation'—a required element in criminal statutes including Sections 528.5, 529, and 530—includes the use of a digital replica with the intent to impersonate another person. Civil remedies under Section 3344 include actual damages (minimum $750), disgorgement of profits, punitive damages, attorney's fees, and injunctive relief, with respondents required to remove or cease unauthorized publication within two business days of a court order.

← Back to the tracker