National summit on AI, culture openly discusses potential threats to Canadian artists

Avery Swartz of AI Skills Lab Canada says the AI and cultural industries are 'defining what it means to be Canadian.'

The National Summit on Artificial Intelligence and Culture came to a close Tuesday, after three days of conversations surrounding Canada’s AI strategy and privacy laws.

Held in Banff, Alta., the three-day summit gathered leaders from government, technology, academia and the cultural sector to discuss the challenges, as well as new opportunities, AI brings.

Among the more than 300 attendees was Avery Swartz, the co-lead of AI Skills Lab Canada, a women-led AI upskilling initiative. She told CTV Your Morning on Tuesday that “it’s really cool what AI can do for the arts.”

Swartz says an example of this kind of innovation lies in the Montreal-based circus group “Les 7 Doigts,” or “The 7 Fingers,” which uses generative AI in live performances.

But she also warns of the potential dangers.

“Let’s be honest. AI poses an existential threat to arts and culture workers. We’re talking about issues of copyright, we’re talking about issues of job displacement, data manipulation, data misinformation,” Swartz said.

The threats were talked about “openly” at the conference in the presence of Canada’s ministers and policy makers, she added.

Though no major announcements were confirmed, Swartz says ministers engaged in policy conversations surrounding potential legislation and the regulation of AI.

“There are a lot of people here who are quite concerned about these issues, especially around intellectual property and copyright.”

Major tech platforms like Google and OpenAI have had lawsuits opened against them for their alleged use of copyright protected materials. Swartz says the arts and culture organizations that she speaks with are concerned about what she refers to as the “three Cs:” control, credit and compensation.

Overall, she says the summit underscores how seriously the Canadian government is taking these concerns and the measures that are being implemented to protect Canadian art.

Following Canada’s big wins at the Oscars on Sunday, including a best animated short award for “The Girl Who Cried Pearls,” by Montreal duo Maciek Szczerbowski and Chris Lavis, Swartz says that “heritage, culture and arts are essential to this moment.”

“These are the things that define what it is to be Canadian and it’s very important that that is not lost.”