Podcast recording and editing platform Podcastle is now joining other companies in the AI-powered, text-to-speech race by releasing its own AI model called Asyncflow v1.0. Thanks to the new model, the company is able to offer more than 450 AI voices that can narrate your text. The startup said that it developed the technology and model in such a way that its training and inference costs are low, giving it an advantage against competitors.
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Sony Music, DNS Capital lead $16m funding round for AI licensing platform Vermillio
An AI “licensing and protection” platform called Vermillio has raised $16 million in a Series A funding round led by Sony Music Entertainment and DNS Capital. Vermillio said on Monday (March 3) that it plans to use the funds to scale its operations and continue “building out solutions for a generative AI internet that enables talent, studios, record labels, and more to protect and monetize their content”.
Source: Sony Music, DNS Capital lead $16m Series A funding round for AI licensing platform Vermillio
UK unions call for action to protect creative industry workers as AI develops
Action is needed to protect workers in creative industries amid huge changes in technology and artificial intelligence, unions have urged. The TUC said there was an urgent need to put in place “proper guardrails” for workers ranging from artists, writers and journalists to teachers and academics. The union organisation said government proposals for copyright and an AI framework, which are under consultation, needed to go further to protect creative workers.
Source: UK unions call for action to protect creative industry workers as AI develops
$500m-valued Suno has admitted training AI on copyrighted music.
The platform’s controversial reputation in the music industry doesn’t seem to have prevented tech giant Amazon– owner of Spotify rival Amazon Music– from partnering with it. Amazon has unveiled a new AI-powered version of its Alexa voice assistant, and among the capabilities of the “next-generation” Alexa+ is an integration with Suno. Amazon’s willingness to do business with AI companies at odds with the music industry isn’t limited to the integration with Suno.
Source: $500m-valued Suno has admitted training AI on copyrighted music.
Snoop Dogg Ditches Spotify After Paltry Royalty Check, Inks Exclusive With Tune.fm
So long, Spotify: Snoop Dogg says he’s “ditching” the streaming service for blockchain-powered competitor Tune.fm, where he’s exclusively released a new single. In no uncertain terms, the longtime crypto enthusiast Snoop Dogg attributed the switch to his allegedly miniscule Spotify royalty payments. And on that front, the rap mainstay said he’d pocketed only $45,000 or so from a staggering one billion Spotify streams.
Source: Snoop Dogg Ditches Spotify After Paltry Royalty Check, Inks Exclusive With Tune.fm
Tech Companies Battle Transparency Obligation in EU AI Act
One of the most divisive aspects of the law concerns transparency in the crucial upstream phase, requiring AI companies to notify rightsholders when their works are being used as training data for the algorithms of their generative AI systems. That notification obligation — the implementation of which is still up in the air but is due to kick in on Aug. 2 — is the crux of the battle for rightsholders seeking compensation and new revenue streams.
ElevenLabs Launches Publishing Platform for AI-Generated Audiobooks
ElevenLabs, the software company specializing in AI-generated audio, has launched ElevenReader Publishing, a platform that offers free audiobook production and distribution. Through ElevenReader, rights holders can upload their books as ePub, DOCX, or PDF files, which are then converted to AI-generated audiobooks, for which authors and publishers can choose the voice of the narrator.
Source: ElevenLabs Launches Publishing Platform for AI-Generated Audiobooks
ASCAP Posts Record-Breaking $1.835 Billion in Revenue for 2024
ASCAP, the only performing rights organization in the U.S. to operate on a not-for-profit basis, delivered a record-breaking $1.835 billion in revenue in the 2024 calendar year, an increase of $98 million, or 5.7% over 2023, with $1.696 billion available for royalty distributions — up by $104 million, or 6.5%. The numbers mark the highest amount in revenue and royalty distributions to creators and music publishers in ASCAP’s history.
Source: ASCAP Posts Record-Breaking $1.835 Billion in Revenue for 2024
OpenAI launches Sora video generation tool in UK amid copyright row
The artificial intelligence company behind ChatGPT
has launched its video generation tool in the UK amid a deepening row between the tech sector and creative industries over copyright. Beeban Kidron, the film director and crossbench peer, said the introduction of OpenAI’s Sora in the UK added “another layer of urgency to the copyright debate.”
Source: OpenAI launches Sora video generation tool in UK amid copyright row
Spotify’s Bold AI Gamble Could Disrupt The Entire Music Industry
Spotify is developing premium-tier AI music creation tools that could transform passive listeners into active creators while generating higher revenue streams. There are some pretty big hurdles, most prominently the question of rights. Are artists and record companies happy with the idea that a million personalized remixes of their treasured IP could suddenly explode into existence? It’s been speculated that this might be why Spotify isn’t yet ready to publicly announce a launch date for the new premium tier service.
Source: Spotify’s Bold AI Gamble Could Disrupt The Entire Music Industry