Paul McCartney releases silent track in protest against AI copyright theft

Paul McCartney has released a near-silent track as part of a protest against the use of artists' intellectual property by artificial intelligence (AI) companies.

The 83-year-old former Beatle, currently touring North America, is using his new recording, titled bonus track, to highlight concerns over AI's impact on the creative industry. The track, featured on a protest album "Is This What We Want?", consists mainly of silence, interrupted by tape hiss and random noises, symbolising the potential "death" of original music if AI continues to exploit artists' work without permission, The Guardian writes. 

The album, which will be released on vinyl later this month, is part of a growing campaign against AI companies training their models on copyrighted material without compensation. McCartney joins other musicians like Kate Bush, Sam Fender, and Hans Zimmer in urging the UK government to protect creators' rights.

"If AI wipes that out, that would be a very sad thing indeed," McCartney has said.

The track’s message is clear: "the British government must not legalise music theft to benefit AI companies."

The UK government has been consulting on a proposed exception to copyright law for "text and data mining," which would allow AI firms to use creative works unless creators opt out.

Ed Newton-Rex, the composer behind the protest album, expressed concern that the government's current stance favors tech giants over British artists.

"The government is paying more attention to US tech companies' interests rather than British creatives'," he said.

As the debate continues, McCartney and other artists are calling for more regulation to ensure AI development does not come at the expense of human creativity.

By Sabina Mammadli