Autodialers, Prerecorded Messages, and Artificial Intelligence Voices

What counts as an autodialer

The statute defines an "automatic telephone dialing system" as equipment with the capacity "to store or produce telephone numbers to be called, using a random or sequential number generator; and to dial such numbers." See 47 U.S.C. § 227(a)(1). The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rule at 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(f)(2) adopts the same standard.

For years, courts disagreed about how far that definition reached. Two decisions addressed that issue.

1. ACA International v. FCC (D.C. Cir. 2018). The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit set aside the FCC's 2015 reading of "capacity" and its treatment of the term. The court found the FCC's approach could sweep in ordinary smartphones.
2. Facebook, Inc. v. Duguid (2021). The Supreme Court held that a device qualifies only if it has the capacity either to store a number using a random or sequential number generator, or to produce a number using one. Equipment that merely stores and dials numbers from a list does not qualify.

The upshot: after Duguid, most modern calling platforms that dial from a customer list fall outside the federal autodialer definition. This does not mean that the analysis ends there. Prerecorded and artificial voice rules apply, and do-not-call rules apply as well.

State autodialer definitions can be broader

Some state statutes use different language. Florida's Telephone Solicitation Act covers an "automated system for the selection and dialing of telephone numbers." Oklahoma and Maryland cover an automated system "for the selection or dialing" of numbers. These broader definitions may apply to equipment that the federal law does not cover. Check the state law where your recipients live.

Artificial or prerecorded voice calls

The prerecorded-voice rules do not depend on how a call is dialed. If a call plays a recorded message or uses a synthetic voice, it is covered.

1. To cell phones: prior express consent for informational calls; prior express written consent for telemarketing (§ 64.1200(a)(1) and (a)(2)).
2. To residential lines: prior express written consent for telemarketing, with limited exemptions for other kinds of calls (§ 64.1200(a)(3)).
3. Identification: every prerecorded message must state the caller's identity at the start and a phone number during or after the message (§ 64.1200(b)).
4. Opt-out: telemarketing messages must offer an automated, interactive opt-out mechanism, with brief instructions, within two seconds of the identification. Messages left on voicemail must also provide a toll-free number to opt out (§ 64.1200(b)(3)).

A circuit court on consent. In Bradford v. Sovereign Pest Control of Texas (Feb. 25, 2026), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that the statute only requires prior express consent to prerecorded calls, regardless of their content. That decision reads the statute differently than the FCC's written-consent rule, but the rule is still in the Code of Federal Regulations.

Voices generated by artificial intelligence

In February 2024, the FCC issued a declaratory ruling, FCC 24-17, holding that artificial intelligence (AI) technologies that generate human voices are "artificial or prerecorded voice" under the TCPA. Voice cloning and voice bots therefore need the same consent as prerecorded calls.

In August 2024, the FCC proposed further rules, FCC 24-84. The FCC's proposal would define "AI-generated call," require callers to disclose AI use when obtaining consent, and require a disclosure at the beginning of each AI-generated call. As of October 14, 2026, those were still proposals. We found no final rule.

Texts with video

In Howard v. Republican National Committee (Jan. 13, 2026), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that a text message with an embedded video with a recorded voice does not "use" a prerecorded voice under § 227(b). The court said that the statute covers the use of a prerecorded voice in the way a call is made or begun, and this text was sent without playing one. A judge dissented.

Proposed changes to call-mechanics rules

In October 2025, the FCC released a further notice of proposed rulemaking, FCC 25-76. Among other things, it asked whether to eliminate the 15-second or four-ring minimum and the 3 percent abandonment limit, and how to handle verified caller name and branding. These are proposals, not rules. Today, § 64.1200(a)(6) and (a)(7) still apply.

What this means for you

1. Do not assume that your dialer is safe just because it is not an autodialer under Duguid. Check prerecorded-voice rules, state definitions, and do-not-call rules.
2. Treat any AI voice as an artificial voice. Get the right consent first.
3. Put identification and an opt-out in every prerecorded message.
4. Watch the FCC's AI proceeding and FCC 25-76 for changes.