On 12 June 2026, Japan’s Intellectual Property Strategy Headquarters adopted the Intellectual Property Strategic Program 2026, setting out the government’s policy priorities for intellectual property, innovation and the creative economy.
A central feature of the Program is the development of a more structured framework for intellectual property protection in the age of generative artificial intelligence. Japan’s stated objective is not to restrict AI development, but to create an ecosystem in which technological innovation can advance alongside the appropriate protection and remuneration of creators and rights holders.
The Program calls for the establishment of a proposed Principles Code on Intellectual Property Protection and Transparency for the Appropriate Use of Generative AI.
The proposed Code is intended to create a safer and more predictable environment for AI developers, service providers, users, creators and rights holders. Its focus includes greater transparency regarding how generative AI systems are developed and operated, including relevant information concerning training and generated outputs, while taking account of trade secrets and other legitimate commercial interests.
The Japanese government also intends to promote the Code domestically and internationally and to encourage the development of frameworks through which creators and content holders may receive appropriate economic returns.
The Code was developed through a consultation process and remains part of an evolving policy framework. The Program should therefore be understood as setting the direction for future implementation rather than, by itself, creating a comprehensive new statutory liability regime.
The Program reflects growing concern that generative AI may be used to produce content that unlawfully reproduces, imitates or competes with protected works.
Japan’s existing copyright framework distinguishes between the use of works for certain information-analysis or non-enjoyment purposes, which may benefit from statutory exceptions, and uses that unreasonably prejudice the interests of copyright owners. Whether an AI-generated output infringes copyright continues to depend on established principles, including similarity to protected expression and reliance on the earlier work.
The 2026 Program signals that Japan intends to supplement these legal principles with stronger transparency, practical enforcement and cooperation mechanisms.
The Program also calls for further consideration of mechanisms that would provide more effective remedies for intellectual property infringement, including compensation reflecting the harm suffered by rights holders and the profits obtained by infringers.
It further contemplates mechanisms that could facilitate the collective enforcement of rights. This may be particularly significant where large numbers of creators are affected by the same AI service or pattern of conduct, but individual claims would be difficult or uneconomic to pursue separately.
These proposals remain subject to further institutional and legislative development.
Japan has traditionally pursued an innovation-friendly approach to AI and data use. The Strategic Program does not abandon that approach. Instead, it represents an effort to add clearer safeguards for creators, content industries and other rights holders.
For businesses developing, supplying or deploying generative AI, the practical message is clear: AI governance is increasingly becoming an intellectual property and risk-management issue. Companies should consider transparency, training-data governance, output controls, complaint procedures, licensing and creator-remuneration mechanisms as part of their broader AI compliance frameworks.
For creators and rights holders, the Program may provide the foundation for greater transparency and more effective routes to compensation and enforcement. Much will, however, depend on the final form of the Principles Code and the implementation of the proposed remedies.
• Intellectual Property Strategic Program 2026 – full official text in Japanese
• Official summary of the Intellectual Property Strategic Program 2026 in Japanese
• Official meeting materials of the Intellectual Property Strategy Headquarters, 12 June 2026
• Prime Minister’s Office announcement concerning the adoption of the Program
• Draft Principles Code consultation materials
• Japan Agency for Cultural Affairs: AI and Copyright
• General Understanding on AI and Copyright in Japan – official English overview
Ran Vogel serves as a leading expert in Patents and Intellectual Property law, representing Fortune 500 companies, multinational corporations, technology companies, universities, and start-ups.
Contact: ranv@s-horowitz.com
