will.i.am - no, the music industry is not "technology" first. Artists and songs come first (tech comes next to amplify them)
The talented artist held court last week in L.A., and his main message did not compute. The song remains the same. All flows from the act of creation.
Wake up! It’s your Monday morning brAIn dump call! First, “the AI:10” - 10 key media-related AI headlines from last week. Then, this week’s mind-blowing genAI video. Next, this week’s “mAIn event” (will.i.am). Followed by, “the cocktAIl” - my special AI event mixology. Finally, “AI legal case tracker” - updates on the key genAI copyright infringement cases.
I. the AI:10 - 10 “quick hit” AI headlines from last week
(1) Whoa! This Supreme Court actually cares for artists? Yes, even this wacky Court continues its journey to ensure that creators get their pay days. First, it was the “Andy Warhol-Prince” copyright infringement case (about which I’ve written extensively). But now, in a new 6-3 decision, the Court ruled in favor of music producer Sherman Nealy against Warner Music in a copyright damages case.
Why highlight this case here in this genAI focused newsletter, you justifiably ask? Because one of the lessons here, in the words of The Hollywood Reporter, is that the Court’s decision “increases the risk of copyright infringement damages exposure ….” In other words, more cash for those whose creative works have been infringed. So, generative AI companies, consider yourselves to be on notice. You may want to license your “training” content now, rather than continue to look the other way as you take it and use it to fuel your AI. As Johnnie Cochrane would undoubtedly say, “The longer you wait, the more damages escalate!”
(2) Whoops, there it is! And just like that, Big Tech is, in fact, picking up the pace of its genAI content licensing deals. Funny what a little pressure and common sense can do. OpenAI just struck a major licensing deal with publishing giant Dotdash Meredith. Read more about it via The Verge. So, will Big Tech turn more to cheaper alternatives instead - like on AI-generated works themselves — so-called “synthetic data”? Read this interesting article via Bloomberg.
(3) Well, I guess it’s back to square 1! So says Paramount, as it lets its 30-day exclusivity M&A window expire with Skydance Media. So now, it’s reportedly a 3-horse race - with Skydance still trotting along, but with Sony and Apollo Capital’s $26 billion joint bid gaining steam - and with a new filly moving fast, ridden by a home-grown Paramount executive team that is mounting up. Read my M&A analysis that discusses it all here.
Why does this matter in the context of this newsletter? Because genAI’s overall zeitgeist is impacting the dynamics of each and every deal that touches media and entertainment. ‘Nuff said.
(4) Et tu, Apple? This one is from the “Yikes” department. Yes, even Apple - the company that prides itself to be the home of creatives - makes mistakes. Its new creator soul-crushing (literally) ad for its new iPad shocked creatives far and wind, particularly in these uncertain genAI times. In a sense, Apple - one of the biggest of big tech - said the quiet part out loud. The creative community’s entire “corpus” of works is there to serve Apple’s hardware (rather than the other way around).
But at least Apple did the right thing. It “owned” it. Apologized for “missing the mark.” And now we can all move on. Read more about it all here via The Verge. But was its “mistake” really due to something more subliminal about how it really feels deep down inside?
(5) A second bite at the Apple. In its now infamous iPad unveiling - with its major innovation being its ever slimming self - Tim Cook & Co. unveiled their new M4 chip. All part of its great genAI story that’s coming soon (its June Worldwide Developers Conference). Will Apple’s AI news land with a hug or a thud? Read more about it here via CNET (that’s a reference I haven’t used for about 10 years).
(6) Meanwhile, democracy matters. It really really does, says Microsoft. The $3.1 Billion company just announced - with great fanfare - that it, together with its child OpenAI, pledged a whopping $2 million (no, not a typo, million) to fight deepfakes this election cycle. “Because we really care.” Meanwhile, are those generous duo actually “frenemies”? So says Fortune, which digs into the two’s sometimes conflicting relationship. Case in point, Microsoft paid $650 million to buy OpenAI rival Inflection AI (without actually buying it). Read more here via Fortune.
(7) Hollywood’s AI disclosure dilemma. Should we or shouldn’t we disclose whether we are using genAI in our creative works? And, if so, how much? Read more here via Axios. What do you think. Should disclosure be required?
(8) Hollywood icons, beware! If you’ve left the life of copyright - and now find yourself in the rule-less public domain - genAI can be your worst nightmare. Steamboat Willie (aka Mickey Mouse) is now a slasher! Yikes! Read more here via The Information.
(9) Wanna read about Elon’s latest AI plan? Nor do I. But should you choose to go down that dark path, read - at your peril - about his plan for AI news, via TheWrap.
(10) Mapped: AI Startups by country. Great resource by “visual capitalist” Marcus Lu. I haven’t independently verified the numbers, but have no reason to doubt them.
II. Mind-blowing AI video of the week: the first fully Sora-AI generated music video (for the band Washed Out)
Experimental filmmaker Paul Trillo — one of the leading filmmakers who experiments with generative AI and whom I also featured last week — created this music video for the band Washed Out using ONLY “Sora” (OpenAI’s new text to video genAI). It’s believed to be the first fully commissioned music video created solely with genAI.
III. “Our industry is technology,” so says artist will.i.am. Wrong! Artists & songs come first. Tech amplifies them.
Last week, I attended the first AI and emerging tech-focused CogX Festival in Los Angeles (surprisingly good!). I briefly watched only one session (the rest of my time was spent in IRL face-to-face meetings — so much more impactful than virtual Zoom meetings). It featured renowned music artist will.i.am, together with the CEO of generative voice AI company ElevenLabs — one of the marquee VC-backed names in genAI and content. will.i.am is an investor in ElevenLabs.
will.i.am — an artist I respect — kicked things off with this statement. “Our industry is technology.” He said that emphatically, without hesitation. And when he did, and as his words sank in, I found myself immediately bristling. My mind and body recoiled.
A bit dramatic perhaps? Maybe. Here’s why my reaction was so strong though. will.i.am was speaking to a packed room, enraptured and hanging on his every word. Lots of heads nodding up and down, in reflexive agreement.
But the music industry — and all creative industries — are not “chicken and egg” situations where there’s a question of what came first. In the realm of music, NOTHING happens without a voice or a song first. There was no technology when humans sang their first melodies. Technology comes second — a powerful second, to be sure — but second just the same. Tech can amplify those songs and the artists who sing and write them, enabling them to be heard by more ears. Tech can also help humans transform their songs and their art. Exhibit A is Gary Numan, the UK artist and godfather of synthesizers who created an entirely new genre using tech (you can listen to my interview with Gary here). In other words, as most genAI companies say to the creative community, technology is a “tool” for them to use.
Why does this matter, you ask? Here’s wy. The way we prioritize art/music and science/tech — and the way we talk about those priorities — sets the tone for how we value them as we define the overall rules of the game as they interact (including the critical rules that define the sharing of economics that flow from that value — in other words, the resulting business models).
So will.i.am (an artist admired and respected by so many) sets the tone, with his words, about how we should view the role of Creatives as we consider generative AI tech and the monies invested in it, flowing from it — and about the propriety of training on the creative works of musicians/artists without consent and compensation.
And what is his message? Well, he invested in ElevenLabs (which scrapes “publicly available” works, which almost certainly means hordes of copyrighted songs and recordings without artist consent — because I’ve asked ElevenLabs several times to confirm or deny, and they’ve been radio silent). He also places tech first in the hierarchy of needs. Artists second. And — as a leading creative voice himself — his words have particular impact. Words and impact that I’m certain would not go over well with other musicians and creatives. I know, because I interact with leading artists all the time.
will.i.am’s content (his words) have power. And will.i.am’s tech — his microphone at the conference — certainly amplified them. But the message itself is what is heard loudest.
[what do you think? send me your feedback at peter@creativemedia.biz]
IV. the cocktAIl- your AI mix of “must attend” AI events
After all, it’s always happy hour somewhere!
(1) THIS WEEK - Thursday, May 16: AI LA’s big “A.I. on the Lot” event is finally here! I’ve featured it for months. I’ll be there. You should too. REGISTER VIA THIS LINK and get 20% off now when you use promo code “PETER.” Reach out to me at peter@creativemedia.biz if you want to meet.
(2) NEXT WEEK - May 20-22: New York City’s big Streaming Media event takes place at the InterContinental Barclay (learn more via this link). Use the discount code “GoUpstream!”. I’ll be speaking in a great AI debate with renowned pundit Robert Tercek on May 20th. Bring your tomatoes to toss! (my debate is the second AI/media at 2:15 pm Eastern). And, let me know if you want to connect.
(3) UPCOMING IN JULY - Digital Hollywood’s first generative AI-focused virtual summit, “The Digital Hollywood AI Summer Summit,” (July 22nd - 25th). I’ll be moderating two great sessions. Learn more here via this link. It’s all entirely free!
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V. the AI legal case tracker - updates on key AI litigation
I lay out the facts - and the latest developments - via this link to the “AI case tracker” tab on “the brAIn” website. You’ll get everything you need (including my detailed analysis of each case). These are the cases I track:
(1) The New York Times v. Microsoft & OpenAI
(2) Sarah Silverman, et al. v. Meta
(3) Sarah Silverman v. OpenAI
(4) Universal Music Group, et al. v. Anthropic
(5) Getty Images v. Stability AI and Midjourney