7 OCTOBER | LONDON 2024
SEPTEMBER 12TH - 14TH
The O2, LONDON
Cinema & AI
Your weekly CogX newsletter on AI and content creation
Hollywood shuts down
Hollywood actors joined writers on strike for the first joint industrial action since 1960. 160k members voted for strikes after negotiations collapsed, halting production and putting blockbusters like the Avatar sequel at risk.
Workers want better pay and safeguards against AI automation. But will the strike incentivise studios to transition to AI even faster, so they can resume production?
Meanwhile, Sarah Silverman joined authors to bring a lawsuit against Meta and OpenAI for $1billion. They argue copyrighted material was used in model training and are demanding compensation. Could they win?
And don't miss out on Christopher Nolan’s AI warning, a backlash against an AI screenplay competition and India’s first AI news reporter in the CogX Must Reads.
CogX Must Reads
Hollywood goes on strike
Actors have joined writers on strike for pay and protection against AI in the first joint industrial action since 1960, when Ronald Reagan was head of the Guild.
The strike will impact the Californian economy - the last writers strike which lasted 100 days in 2007/08 cost the state an estimated $2bn. This shutdown is likely to be even more disruptive.
Christopher Nolan warns of AI risk
Oppenheimer director, Nolan, compared AI development with the rise of the atomic bomb - featured in his latest film.
He stressed the need for accountability when adopting the technology and argued that studios don’t understand the underpinning algorithms. Applying AI without accountability is “terrifying”, he said.
Industry
Is $200 for image rights fair?
Hollywood labour unions have alleged that studios want to pay extras about $200 for the rights to use their likeness forever.
Studios have proposed scanning background performers when they hire them for a day, then using the scanned image and likeness for any project in the future with no consent or compensation.
AI screenplay contest cancelled
Screenplay contest company Scriptapalooza called off an AI screenplay contest following criticism of being tone deaf, given the Hollywood Writers strike.
Scriptapalooza admitted that they were “completely wrong” and “do not support AI. Period.”
Media
Judges incorrectly assume family photograph is AI generated
Suzi Dougherty’s photograph of her son was disqualified in a photography competition when judges thought it was AI generated.
Dougherty was shocked, claiming she “doesn’t know how to do AI”. The episode highlights the difficulty of navigating AI images that aren't labelled.
India introduces the first AI news presenter
Odisha Television has developed Lisa, an AI news anchor who can present the news.
The next step is to train Lisa to interact with others and develop her proficiency in the Odia language, to cater to local viewers.
Copyright
Sarah Silverman sues ChatGPT
Silverman and two novelists have joined forces to sue Meta and OpenAI, accusing the companies of using copyrighted material without consent to train models.
Each suit seeks nearly $1billion in damages and is part of a wider pushback from content creators on AI training methods.
UK Music urges action on AI
In an open letter to the Secretary of State, UK Music warned that government action is needed to ensure that AI firms do not “crush human creativity”.
Their principles of regulation include labelling AI-generated music clearly, record keeping for training data and that rights holders have clear ownership over their content.
Top Stories
In case you missed it
Check out this dystopian AI-generated trailer for Heidi that went viral this week.
We'd love to hear your thoughts on this week’s Issue and what you’d like to see more of.