Musicians bend government’s ear on AI copyright

This article appeared as part of the Daily Sensemaker newsletter – one story a day to make sense of the world. To receive it in your inbox, featuring content exclusive to the newsletter, sign up for free here.

The UK government has backtracked on its position to allow AI companies to use copyrighted works to train their models. This followed an outcry from the creative industry, which included the release of a silent album supported by more than 1,000 musicians. Damon Albarn, Kate Bush, Elton John and Dua Lipa are some of those who have opposed the position. The government has not, however, done a complete reverse ferret. It has not ruled out allowing tech companies to use copyrighted works and merely says it “no longer has a preferred option”. In the US, a connected, but different debate, is also raging. Earlier this month the supreme court declined to hear the case of a computer scientist denied copyright for a piece of art made by AI.