There is good news for music artists in the UK as a worrying copyright exemption for AI training has been reconsidered.

The UK government has provided relief for the music industry. The government had made plans to allow an exemption to copyright law in the case of “broad text and data mining”.

This would have allowed AI companies to train their software on copyrighted content without the need for permission or repercussions. Machine-learned AI presents an existential threat to artists, as it is capable of reproducing their sound and infringing on their voices and unique musical sound.

The government clarified their position on the exemption in response to a Culture, Media, and Sport Committee report on AI. They explain how they want to prioritise and promote the development of AI “to make the UK one of the top places in the world to build foundational AI companies”.

However, they write: “The Government is not proceeding with its original proposal for a broad copyright exception for text and data mining… the Government instead committed to develop a code of practice on copyright and AI, to enable the AI and creative sectors to grow in partnership.

“This supports the Government’s ambition to make the UK a world leader in research and AI innovation, while ensuring that the UK copyright framework continues to promote and reward investment in creativity.”

In November, the UK government convened a roundtable to discuss how to tackle AI to protect artists. The Council of Music Makers (CMM) criticised the decision to offer 3 seats to executives from the major labels whilst offering just one representative of all media (music, film, theatre, and literature) a place. The CMM described it as “profoundly unbalanced and tone-deaf”.