Paul McCartney, Elton John, Dua Lipa, and Coldplay have joined more than 400 artists advocating for copyright protection in light of advances in A.I. technology. The group all signed an official letter urging Prime Minister Keir Starmer to update U.K. laws to help safeguard their creative work ahead of a vote in the House of Lords on Monday (May 12). “Creative copyright is the lifeblood of the creative industries,” the letter reads. “It recognizes the moral authority we have over our work and provides an income stream for 2.4 million people across the four nations of the United Kingdom.” The artists are in support of the Data (Use and Access) Bill, which aims to ensure developers are transparent with copyright owners when utilizing their material for training A.I. models. The letter states that “the first job of any government is to protect its citizens,” while adding that the bill would “put transparency at the heart of the copyright regime and allow both AI developers and creators to develop licensing regimes that will allow for human-created content well into the future.” (Rolling Stone)
