“Music is being scraped without any permission, without any money going back to the original creatives and performers". Photo: Shutterstock.
A new report from Queen Mary University of London, the Institute for the Future of Work and The Turing Institute reveals how Generative AI is already having profound impacts on the UK’s creative economy and calls for urgent action to protect creative workers.
Key findings:
- 73% of respondents felt that generative AI is changing the quality of work in the creative industries
- 68% feel their job security is “diminished” or “greatly diminished” as a result of generative AI
- 61% report that the value of their work by others is “diminished” or “greatly diminished” as a result of generative AI
- 55% report that financial compensation for their work is “diminished” or “greatly diminished” as a result of generative AI.
The CREAATIF project, funded by AHRC and the BRAID programme, and run in partnership with unions including the MU, spoke to 335 freelance creative workers to understand how generative AI (GenAI) is affecting their rights, work, and livelihoods.
The project sets out seven key policy and regulatory recommendations to make sure new technologies support, rather than undermine, the value and future of work in an industry that contributes over £100 billion to the UK economy each year.
Your music should not be used to train AI without your consent
Representing the Union at the launch, bassoonist, broadcaster for BBC Radio and TV, and Chair of the MU Members’ Assembly Linton Stephens said: “I’d like to see regulation that’s ahead, rather than responsive and reactive. I’d like to think more about the implications of what AI can do and respond to that as opposed to AI being out in the world first.”
MU Assistant General Secretary Phil Kear explains how generative AI is impacting musicians: “Music is being scraped without any permission, without any money going back to the original creatives and performers, and outputs from AI are going to be out in the marketplace competing with you.
“There’s an extra concern for musicians particularly – they might have signed contracts with rightsholders, publishers and record labels. Those publishers and record labels can potentially go out and make deals with AI firms without any reference back to the artists – taking rights that were originally assigned to them for the release of commercial products, and selling those rights on to AI without permission, and without the artist being in the room or having any say over what share they might receive, if any at all.”
Freelance workers are especially vulnerable to changes
Professor of Ethics, Technology and Society at Queen Mary University of London and CREAATIF Project Lead, David Leslie, said: “The GenAI revolution is shaking up every part of cultural production – from the first spark of an idea, to how creative work gets out into the world. Freelance creative workers, who experience work life without the protections that come with salaried jobs, are especially vulnerable to these changes.”
The creative industries are valuable – and need protection
Director of the Centre for Creative Collaboration at Queen Mary University of London, Dr. Aoife Monks, said: "The creative workforce has built one of the eight growth areas of the UK economy. They deserve fair compensation, stronger protections around intellectual property, and clearer guidelines and transparency around the use of creative work in training AI models.
“Economic growth should mean equitable growth, and this research reveals the need for a policy approach that takes account of the complex eco-system of freelance working conditions.”
Explore all the research findings and deep dive into the policy recommendations via the CREEATIF research hub.
7 policy and regulatory recommendations to support the creative industries in the age of Generative AI
- Fair remuneration: enforce existing ownership rights and create new mechanisms to redistribute GenAI-generated revenues back to the human sources of creative data and content.
- Legislative reform: update UK laws to protect the freelance creative workforce — addressing employment rights, skills development, and AI-specific risks — in partnership with unions and industry experts.
- Inclusive AI governance: embed creative workforce perspectives in AI regulatory design, ensuring structured engagement that includes not only traditional ‘creators’, but all affected roles.
- Stronger regulation for AI firms: mandate transparency, prompt action on infringement, and compensation when GenAI systems use creative outputs without consent.
- Ongoing impact assessments: monitor the effects of GenAI on job quality, working conditions, and income security across the creative workforce, with clear accountability mechanisms.
- Preserving human originality: introduce ‘human made’ watermarking and provenance tools that enable consumers to distinguish AI-generated content and support originality in commercial ecosystems.
- Workforce training and empowerment: provide targeted education on IP and labour rights, contract negotiation, anti-mimicry strategies, and how to challenge bias and misrepresentation in GenAI tools.