#94 Is AI Hijacking the Music Industry?
Playing Second Fiddle; India - Russia Nuclear Cooperation
Today, Rohan Pai examines recent developments in AI-generated music, and Sridhar Krishna writes on the untapped potential for India and Russia to cooperate on nuclear energy.
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Cyberpolitik: Playing Second Fiddle
— Rohan Pai
A new report from last month found that YouTube has begun negotiations with music industry giants, such as Universal, Warner and Sony, to gain licenses for songs by their most famous artists. In doing so, the Google-owned video streaming service plans to use these copyrighted music libraries as training data for their newest artificial intelligence tools that are currently in development. The most groundbreaking of these is the ‘AI song generator’ that would potentially empower YouTube to create seemingly original music based on stylistic influences from existing songs written by humans. The finer details of these negotiations are not concrete at the moment, and it is uncertain whether record labels would sell the licenses of their songs unilaterally or consult the artists in question.
Although AI-generated music has become far more accessible to laymen in the last decade or so, it is by no means a recent phenomenon. In fact, one of the first examples dates back to 1957 when musical composer Lejaren Hiller collaborated with mathematician Leonard Isaacson to produce a piece of music called ‘Illiac Suite’ in the style of a string quartet. This experiment was entirely generated using the Illiac I, short for Illinois Automatic Computer, which was a supercomputer available to students at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in the 1950s. Since then, the AI-music landscape has transformed by leaps and bounds, with its latest iteration being text-to-music generation. The AI models Suno and Udio, for example, use deep learning algorithms to convert user-inputted text into a unique song, complete with vocal arrangements and instrumentals.
Given this rapidly changing industry climate, it comes as no surprise that there has been a swift pushback from those affected. In April, an open letter, signed by hundreds of A-list musicians, was addressed to tech firms demanding protections against AI that profited off their original material. This letter, published by the non-profit Artist Rights Alliance, was signed by the likes of Billie Eilish, Nicki Minaj, Stevie Wonder and even posthumously by the estate of Frank Sinatra. A month earlier, the US state of Tennessee had introduced the ELVIS Act or Ensuring Likeness Voice and Image Security Act which prohibits the usage of voice-cloning technology without the consent of the musician. Most recently, the RIAA or Recording Industry Association of America, filed two lawsuits against the aforementioned companies, Suno and Udio, for mass copyright infringement last month.
The situation is not entirely black or white, though. The open letter, for instance, acknowledges the responsible use cases of AI, such as cutting down on costs and improving the efficiency of music production, and does not call for a moratorium. A significant example of pro-AI use in music is an experiment powered by YouTube Shorts titled ‘Dream Track’ in November last year, which collaborated with 9 artists, including Demi Lovato, Troye Sivan and John Legend. In essence, Dream Track would allow fans to input a text-based prompt and create unique 30-second soundtracks using the voices and styles of these artists. Although this feature was only available to a select number of people for testing, and YouTube does not intend to expand it further, they have several other AI tools under their belt. Some of these include a custom radio generator, and a song-recognition tool similar to Shazam that finds music based on a user singing or humming.
It remains to be seen whether these tools, once released to the public, will encourage or dampen creativity in the music industry, but the tempo is unlikely to drop.
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Technomachy: India - Russia Nuclear Co-operation
— Sridhar Krishna
Russia today may not have the global heft and influence the Soviet Union wielded, but it still has a lot to offer India. One such area is nuclear technology. Over the past five years, nuclear cooperation between India and Russia has seen significant advancements marked by strategic agreements, technological collaborations, and the expansion of nuclear power projects. This partnership continues to be pivotal in enhancing India's nuclear energy capacity.
Expansion of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant
A visible aspect of this cooperation is the ongoing development of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) in Tamil Nadu. This project, which began under an intergovernmental agreement signed in 1988, has seen substantial progress. Units 1 and 2 of the Kudankulam NPP are already operational, and work on Units 3 to 6 is actively underway. The construction of Units 5 and 6 began in 2021, with the entire plant expected to be fully operational by 2027.
New Agreements and Technological Collaborations
In recent years, India and Russia have signed several new agreements to further their nuclear cooperation. This year has seen some significant acceleration in this area.
In February 2024, a new protocol to the intergovernmental agreement on the construction of the Kudankulam NPP was signed, highlighting the commitment of both nations to expedite the ongoing projects. This protocol was finalized during a visit by Rosatom Director General Alexei Likhachev to India, where he met with Ajit Kumar Mohanty, Chairman of India's Atomic Energy Commission.
Rosatom offered to provide Indian scientists access to the MBIR multi-purpose fast neutron research reactor currently under construction in Russia in order to conduct research.
Additionally, during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to Russia in July 2024, discussions were held on exploring new projects and advanced technologies in the nuclear sector. Rosatom, Russia's state nuclear corporation, proposed the construction of six more high-powered power units in India, along with small nuclear power plants designed by Russia.
ROSATOM also said, “Russia and India have great potential for cooperation in the field of controlled nuclear fusion. They see prospects for collaboration in closing the nuclear fuel cycle.” These discussions also included non-energy applications of nuclear technology, such as water desalination and irradiation of seeds and food products.
The strategic importance of this cooperation cannot be overstated. Russia has been a reliable partner in India's quest to expand its nuclear energy capacity when no one else was willing to help. There are traditional ties with the research establishments in Russia.
Moreover, the collaboration extends beyond just power generation. India and Russia are exploring joint work on closing the nuclear fuel cycle, which involves the reprocessing and recycling of nuclear fuel. This is a crucial step towards sustainable nuclear energy and reducing nuclear waste.
Looking ahead, the future of Indo-Russian nuclear cooperation appears promising. The roadmap for nuclear cooperation includes the construction of 12 nuclear units in India, with 4 to 8 units planned at Kudankulam alone. Access to research in Nuclear Fusion will be great for developing fusion reactors in the future. While today, India is no longer denied any access to nuclear technology from the West, the opportunities offered through our traditional ties with Russia are to be cherished.
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What We're Reading (or Listening to)
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