AI could replace all music ever recorded with Taylor Swift covers - researchers

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Researchers in the UK have expressed fears that artificial intelligence could corrupt or completely replace humanity's cultural heritage such as music, literature and historical records. They argue that centralised data repositories like music services are vulnerable to AI infiltration.

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As a mental experiment, researchers from Durham University and the University of the Arts London used state-of-the-art AI models to create cover versions of famous songs allegedly sung by Taylor Swift. They estimated that it would cost more than $266 million to generate such "Taylor versions" for all recorded music.

According to the researchers, AI, given the right motivation and capabilities, will be able to corrupt or delete cultural data it gains access to. Nick Collins of Durham University has called for methods to be developed to protect data from such a scenario.

However, not all experts share these concerns. Sandra Wachter of Oxford University called it unlikely that AI would be able to "wake up" and create its own targets for which it would act.

Carissa Véliz of the same university believes the real threat is that society will become too dependent on AI, with its inherent biases and errors. She calls for careful regulation of AI security rather than finding ways to shut it down completely.

Source: NewScientist