logo
Spotify CEO says AI is no threat to music industry, but a tool for creatives

Spotify CEO says AI is no threat to music industry, but a tool for creatives

Artificial intelligence will encourage more people to create music in the future and is not a threat to the industry, the founder and CEO of streaming giant Spotify said.
Advertisement
Artists using machine-learning tools to produce music have given rise to concerns about whether AI-generated music – even entirely fake artists – could one day replace human artists.
'I'm mostly optimistic and mostly very excited because we're just in the beginning of understanding this future of creativity that we're entering,' Daniel Ek said at an open house at the company's headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, this week.
Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter and a recent book, Mood Machine, have accused Spotify of tasking a handful of producers to make thousands of songs under fake AI profiles, which the company allegedly pushed onto playlists – saving Spotify money by elbowing out real artists and their higher royalties.
Spotify has been accused of filling playlists with AI-generated music. Photo: Reuters
Spotify has denied the claims.
Advertisement
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Hong Kong CEOs get crash course in AI to pass on skills to 5,000 students
Hong Kong CEOs get crash course in AI to pass on skills to 5,000 students

South China Morning Post

time32 minutes ago

  • South China Morning Post

Hong Kong CEOs get crash course in AI to pass on skills to 5,000 students

More than a dozen CEOs and top-level executives in Hong Kong are taking a crash course in AI with the help of a non-profit to equip them with the skills to help 5,000 secondary school students learn the essentials of the technology. The CEO training on Sunday was a key component of the AI-5000 Initiative, a collaborative effort between Project Melo and Preface, a Hong Kong-based education technology company. The project garnered support from 17 top-level executives and leaders, including M+ museum chairman Bernard Chan, Link Reit CEO George Hongchoy, and Randy Lai, the CEO of McDonald's Hong Kong. 'We believe that Hong Kong secondary students absolutely have to focus on AI,' said Kenny Lam Kwok-fung, a co-founder of Project Melo, a local non-profit focused on empowering young people that is co-running the programme. Being held between September this year and March 2026, more than 50 schools are taking part in the programme. The courses will be delivered by Preface staff, students from Project Melo and the 15 participating CEOs. The training programme is being launched amid a wider push by the government to get young people interested in the technology.

Orange Era? All about the colour linked to Taylor Swift's new album
Orange Era? All about the colour linked to Taylor Swift's new album

South China Morning Post

time5 hours ago

  • South China Morning Post

Orange Era? All about the colour linked to Taylor Swift's new album

Taylor Swift swathed her bombshell new album announcement this week in a shade she is calling Portofino Orange Glitter after donning the colour onstage during the latter part of her latest tour. Will The Life of a Showgirl usher in the pop star's Orange Era? On her boyfriend Travis Kelce's New Heights podcast, Swift leaned toward a yes. 'I've just always liked it,' she said. 'It feels like kind of energetically how my life has felt. And this album is about what was going on behind the scenes in my inner life during this tour.' In all its glory, the colour can evoke creativity, enthusiasm, energy, optimism and more. Swift performs at the Paris La Defense Arena during her Eras Tour concert in Paris, on May 9, 2024. Photo: AP While some see a downside in the brighter hues, perceiving them as clownish or silly, orange is more often exuberant or inviting, colour experts said. The positive sentiments are precisely how Swift described the mood she wanted to capture on the album: 'so exuberant and electric and vibrant'.

How KPop Demon Hunters took inspiration from Korea's female shamans who scare away spirits
How KPop Demon Hunters took inspiration from Korea's female shamans who scare away spirits

South China Morning Post

time7 hours ago

  • South China Morning Post

How KPop Demon Hunters took inspiration from Korea's female shamans who scare away spirits

Music and dance, the key similarity between real-life mudang and Huntrix, are central to gut rituals. While there are many types of gut held for different purposes across different regions in Korea, the two main categories are those held for the living and those held for the dead. To this day, mudang have specific religious and social roles, and conduct rituals known as gut to appease spirits, divine fortunes and heal illnesses. There are at least 300,000 – some figures estimate up to 800,000 – mudang in South Korea today. Unlike Huntrix, who wear what any other modern K-pop singers would wear, a mudang's traditional attire is a vibrantly coloured, flowy hanbok – a traditional Korean garment – and a wide-brimmed gat or hat. These women may also carry swords. The inspiration for the heroines comes from Korean priestesses, or shamans , known as mudang. For thousands of years, mudang have been used for divination and supernatural support by Koreans, though they were historically marginalised in general society. On the surface, they are wildly popular Korean idols who charm their fans with catchy tunes and electrifying dance choreography. Beneath the glitz and glam, however, are three strong warriors who use their song, dance and magical weapons to slay demons and to reinforce the honmoon – a barrier between the human world and the demon one. A binarigut, for example, is a ritual in which a mudang prays to a god, thanks the ancestors, and wishes for the happiness and prosperity of a community. The name comes from the Korean word bilda, which means to pray. On the other hand, the jindo ssitgimgut is one held in the southern Jindo region of South Korea for those who have died. This particular gut consists of around 10 stages and is held to pray for the dead, help release their unresolved resentments, purify their souls and ultimately guide them to rebirth. The name comes from the Korean word ssitgim, which means 'to wash'. The ritual was designated as a national intangible cultural heritage in 1980. In a gut, the sounds of drums, gongs and chants, along with rhythmic movements, create a powerful experience that invites the gods, tells stories and even heals the sick. Shim Jin-song, pictured here in 1996, is a shaman who accurately predicted the death of the late North Korean leader Kim Il-sung. Photo: AFP Music is central to a gut ceremony. Without it, a ritual would not have the same energy or meaning. The rhythm sets the pace, tells the spirits it is time to come, and guides the shaman and the audience through different parts of the ceremony. The most important instruments are the janggu, a double-headed drum; the buk, a barrel-shaped drum; and the kkwaenggwari, a small brass gong. They create fast, rousing beats that can make people dance or fall into a trance. The shaman sings special songs called muga, which tell stories about the gods and ask for their help. Different rhythms are used for different purposes. Some are slow and steady to call forth peaceful spirits. Others are fast and wild and are used to drive away evil or when the mudang is becoming possessed by a god. There are about 12 main rhythms, but each region of Korea has its own variation. Two female shamans dance during a ritual to pray for a good catch of fish on South Korea's eastern island of Ulneungdo. Photo: Reuters Dance in a gut is not just about movement; it is a way for the mudang to become one with the spirits, and there are different kinds of dances for different reasons. They might start slowly with the spirit-calling dance, swaying and spinning to invite the gods. As the music tempo increases, or in the possession dance, their movements become more powerful and they might start shaking or jumping, as if a spirit has taken control of their body. With healing dances, the shaman might use a fan, a knife or bells to scare away sickness or bad luck. The dances often imitate animals or natural forces, like the flapping of a bird's wings or the prowling of a tiger. These movements are not just for show; they hold deep meaning, connecting the human world to the spirit world. Oftentimes, a gut is an event that brings a community together. The audience does not just watch, but becomes part of the ritual. They clap, sing along and sometimes join in with the simple dances. This makes a ceremony feel like a shared experience, bringing everyone closer to the spirits. Advertisement

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store