The music industry seems to be welcoming the AI-era with open arms. We’ve already seen an AI-generated song top the Billboard Country Digital Songs Sales chart in recent weeks. Whiskey Riff reported that a  track titled “Walk My Walk,” by an artist called Breaking Rust, had seemingly fooled the masses. It’s a complete AI creation all around – from the artist, to the music video, to the song itself. “Walk My Walk” is actually credited to someone named Aubierre Rivaldo Taylor, who has seemingly also created another “artist” called Defbeatsai, which posts nothing but raunchy AI-generated songs. At least when it comes to the Instagram page for Defbeatsai, it’s disclosed that the songs are AI-generated (I mean, AI is in the name of the artist). When it comes to the social media for Breaking Rust, that “artist” is described as “Outlaw Country” and “Soul Music for Us.” There’s no mention that Breaking Rust’s music has been created entirely by AI, and “Walk My Walk” in particular is the one that rocketed to the top of the digital sales chart. It became one of the top stories in not just country music, but all of music this month. And now, even more AI acts are jumping up the Billboard Country Digital Songs Sales Chart. Many music fans have been outraged by the news, and country music stars like Jason Aldean and Charley Crockett have even spoken out against it. All in all, it seems like everyone and their mother hates the idea of AI infiltrating the music industry. And with the outrage and backlash that’s come from Breaking Rust’s success, you’d think that the music industry would make sure to stand firm and condemn AI-generated music, right? Wrong. According to Bloomberg News, some of music industry’s biggest labels have signed on to be a part of a new, AI music streaming service called Klay. The Los Angeles-based music technology company has decided to enter into the music streaming space, and what they’ve convinced UMG, Sony, and WMG to be a part of seems rather scary: “Universal Music Group, Sony Music and Warner Music Group have licensed their catalogs to Klay, an AI-powered music streaming startup that will let users remake songs using artificial intelligence.” Oh boy. Klay says their large music model “reimagines listening with immersive, interactive tools and is trained entirely on licensed music,” and they have apparently been working with some of the biggest parties in the music industry for over a year to “to build an innovative and comprehensive licensing framework for an AI-driven music experience.” Somehow, they are also promising that their AI streaming service will be “fully respecting the rights of artists, songwriters, and rights holders,” but I’m not just sure how that will be true, or how it will be policed. Vince Gilligan, the incredibly talented mind behind shows like Breaking Bad and the new Apple TV+ show Pluribus, has called AI a “plagiarism machine,” and he’s absolutely got a point when he says that. Artificial intelligence uses existing art to teach itself how to make new art, and never credits what it takes from. All the while, companies continue to push it out, saying that the technology will change the way people create and consume things. The only problem? NOBODY WANTS IT. Disney recently shared that they were going to integrate AI into Disney+ to allow for users to create short-form content that’s generated by AI, and creators and artists immediately pushed back. One specific person by the name of Dana Terrace, who created the Disney animated series The Owl House, even called for those online to cancel their Disney+ subscription and to pirate her show. The “House of Mouse” has been one of the leaders in animation and art across decades, and now it seems like they are throwing that all away because of the shortcuts that AI can provide. The music industry, and these three labels in particular, seems to be doing much of the same, which is certainly a shame for artists and musicians who are passionate about creating music. We’re truly entering into some scary times with AI. Big corporations continue to embrace and push artificial intelligence out, all while most people are left asking if all of this is really necessary. When AI surpasses human beings in total art and music creation, it’ll undoubtedly be a sad existence. And we certainly seem to be barreling towards that future, unless some people start standing up to the AI movement.The post Some Of The Music Industry’s Biggest Labels Have Signed On To Be A Part Of New, AI Streaming Service first appeared on Whiskey Riff.