Music Copyright & AI: Who Owns Code-Created Songs?

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AI is capable of making music, but does that make AI an artist? As AI reshapes how music is made, our country's legal systems will have to deal with the messy questions it creates regarding authorship. Does AI create its own work, or is it the humans behind them? Can AI legally be trained on copyrighted music in the first place? Can code be creative? For now, these questions are largely unanswered, leaving a gray area that current law doesn't contend with. Meanwhile, major labels are already distributing AI-made works and humans have used AI in the studio for decades. Depending on how legal decisions shake out, AI could become a valuable tool to assist creativity, a nuisance ripping off hard-working human musicians, or both.

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photo of Dani Deahl
Dani Deahl

BandLab

photo of Jean-Michel Jarre
Jean-Michel Jarre

Jean-Michel Jarre

photo of Meredith Rose
Meredith Rose

Public Knowledge

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