Australian music industry organizations have condemned the unauthorized use of their creativity to train large AI models. The members drafted a letter to the government demanding the maintenance of their copyright and stronger protection against unauthorized use. The move comes after reports of Australian musicians’ work being used without their consent. Here’s a closer look at the Australian music industry’s strong stance to defend their rights against AI technology.
The Australian music industry has written to the government
Presenting an open letter urging government officials, Australian musicians, local artists and organizations collaborated to protect producers under the law. The coalition includes APRA AMCOS, ARIA, AMPAL, The Copyright Agency, Australian Music Centre, National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Music Office, Australian Publishers Association, Screenrights, Screen Producers Australia, AIR, and others, according to Variety Australia. Previously, The Atlantic reported that the work of millions of local artists in Australia and New Zealand was used to train AI models without the knowledge, consent or payment of songwriters, composers and publishers. The work was included in four ‘huge datasets of songs’ raising concerns of copyright infringement, accountability and security. Local artists, whose work was part of the equation, include Midnight Oil, Cold Chisel, Sia, Crowd House, Split Enz, INXS, Kylie MinogueChé Fu, Lorde, Christine Anu, Nick Cave, Tame Impala, Yothu Yindi, Six60, Marlon Williams, Dan Sultan, and more, according to the aforementioned outlet.
About applications from UK musicians
Before Australia, the music industry in the United Kingdom expressed similar concerns about copyright and AI technology. In 2025, 400 artists, incl Elton John, Doa Lipaand sir Paul McCartneySir Keir wrote a letter addressed to Starmer. Speaking of the UK’s position as a creative powerhouse, artists said failing to protect their rights would be like giving away their work to tech companies.
