Introduction
The advent of AI involves various and wonderful applications of the new technology, improving human life overall.
However, human creativity remains unique and irreplaceable in all its manifestations and especially in the field of musical creation.
AUTODIA believes that a balance should be maintained, establishing a clear distinction between innovative creation that captures human emotion and reflection and standardized musical products generated by algorithms, that is GenAI models.
The opportunities
Many composers and songwriters are already using the tools that AI offers them, enhancing their creative expression and experimentation, promoting their music, and creating/customizing content for niche audiences.
However, while technological developments accelerate at a rapid pace, without the prior regulation of critical issues internationally regarding consent and remuneration of creators from the use of their works in the training of GAI models, there is a risk that AI, with the opportunities, but also the emerging challenges, to gradually replace human jobs in music industry.
The challenges
Songwriters, composers and lyricists are in danger of being crushed between the huge commercial interests and profits of the big tech companies and the unprecedented volume production of musical products by GAI models: perfect algorithmic imitations of their own genuine works. The quality of these products that will flood the market massively and uncontrollably, at a low or no cost, will be controversial, while the wages, work and future of human creators will be threatened with commercial ostracism.
For the first time, the new technology may disrupt the eternal coherence of European cultural tradition, as GAI algorithms gradually dominate music and culture, banishing human inspiration, the thoughtful reflection on the human psyche, and collective consciousness and memory of age-old narratives that permeate all forms of human art.
In music, GAI models can be rapidly trained to create melodies, chord progressions, rhythmic motifs, and the structure of a musical work, forever memorizing countless pieces of music.
But, even so, music is something beyond and above all that, because it stems from the genuine creativity of human, to his history and social becoming and endures time, returning back to human.
The Political Agreement on the European Legislation on Artificial Intelligence
Following the completion of tripartite consultations and the reaching of a political agreement in principle, on the European regulatory framework for Artificial Intelligence (EU AI Act), it was agreed that:
General-Purpose Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) models should comply with the transparency requirements originally proposed by the European Parliament, which include writing technical documentation requirements, complying with EU copyright law and providing a detailed summary of the content used for training these models.
Based on the above, AUTODIA declares the following:
In line with the European and international Organizations and collective bodies of music industry, our Society welcomes this political agreement and supports the principles of transparency and respect for EU regulations, regarding intellectual property rights, obligations that must apply for all AI models.
Furthermore, preventing any attempt to circumvent the EU's protective measures is a prerequisite for ensuring a sustainable music ecosystem for creators, in terms of their moral right of consent, work, remuneration, recognition and copyright.
With a view to finalizing the legislative text at a technical level, we now need strong rules implementing the new framework, with clear obligations in place, to allow rightsholders to effectively exercise their rights, based on European law, to ensure that principles agreed by EU policy makers will have a real impact on the market.
Shaping our future together
AUTODIA is willing to embrace the applications of AI by supporting their further development. However, this should happen through processes of lawful licensing and mutually beneficial cooperation and dialogue between creators and workers in the cultural sector with the people who work daily on new technological tools, in order to jointly contribute to creation and innovation in Europe for a better future for our societies.