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Sometimes, it's best to just let it be. That's my personal conclusion after Sir Paul McCartney revealed that artificial intelligence had enabled the production of what he called The Beatles' final song, Now and Then.
AI had extracted John Lennon's voice from a scratchy, hissy demo tape and cleaned it up allowing for the track to be mixed, with plans to release it later this year. It's not the first time the ghost of Lennon has made an appearance. At last year's Glastonbury Festival, McCartney performed a virtual duet with Lennon, thanks again to AI, 42 years after John was slain on a New York street.
It's the A - artificial - in AI which makes this all a little creepy. Lennon achieved cultural immortality during his lifetime and should be allowed to rest in peace in death. Using technology to add his voice to songs decades after his departure seems to be yet another example of the technology driven fakery we're drowning in.
This year, we saw an AI-generated fake photo win a prestigious global award, which was declined by the artist who submitted it.
Last month, a photo of smoke billowing out the Pentagon posted to Twitter on a fake account briefly rattled stock markets until it was called out as AI mischief. In the four minutes before it was debunked, the Dow Jones Industrial Index dropped 85 points (0.3 per cent).
Yesterday, during his National Press Club address, AMA president Professor Steve Robson touched on how technology had spread misinformation much faster than pathogens during the pandemic. Those algorithms that deliver what they "think" you want to see into your social media feeds were to blame.
Criminals are now employing AI to mimic trusted voices in order to scam money out of unsuspecting victims. The software is so sophisticated it can even replicate a family member's voice to con unsuspecting relatives in the same way the "Hi Mum, I've lost my phone" text scams do.
And now, we see AI creeping into culture, resurrecting the dead so their legacy might be milked a little more. It seems grotesque, no matter how much we miss the artist/musician/author/comedian.
When John Le Carre died in 2020, like many of his fans around the world, I was devastated. His novels, with their labyrinthine plots and intimate reflections on betrayal, illusion and human frailty, had always been mainstays, the publication of a new one eagerly awaited. But the thought of fresh but fake Le Carre stories, generated by software, leaves me stone cold. That prospect, however unlikely, is a lot worse than the acceptance there will be no more from my favourite author. I hope they never happen.
And as for The Beatles "last song", I'll stick with The End, the last known song recorded back in 1969 with all The Beatles present.
HAVE YOUR SAY: Does AI's ability to fake photos and voices concern you? Does it have a place in our cultural life? Should the use of AI be regulated or has the horse already bolted? Email us: echidna@theechidna.com.au
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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
- Minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney says misinformation has become the "weapon of choice" for the opponents of the Voice to Parliament, with the "no" campaign "importing American style-Trump politics to Australia". Speaking at the Committee for Economic Development of Australia conference, Ms Burney accused the "no" campaign of aiming "to polarise people".
- Australia's games industry grew to $4.12 billion in 2022, new data revealed. The data comes from the Interactive Games and Entertainment Association, a research, data and advocacy association representing the voice of Australian and New Zealand companies in the computer and video games industry. It also revealed that the Nintendo Switch was the highest-selling video game hardware platform in Australia in 2022.
- Consumer confidence has sunk to another post-pandemic low following the 12th interest rate rise in 13 months. Morale has been low for several months in response to cost-of-living pressures and interest rate hikes and has now fallen to its lowest level since the COVID-19 lockdowns sent confidence plummeting in April 2020.
THEY SAID IT: "The sad thing about artificial intelligence is that it lacks artifice and therefore intelligence." - Jean Baudrillard
YOU SAID IT: No one comes out of the Brittany Higgins-Bruce Lehrmann-Katy Gallagher saga looking good. Mr Lehrmann has always denied the allegation, and he is no longer facing any charges. And for those on Struggle Street, the controversy matters little. You had a variety of opinions.
"I can't agree with you on this one," says Jane. "The leaked evidence suggests how much Ms Higgins was happy to publicise her allegation from the outset, prioritising the media splash over having the matter dealt with by the police."
Sandra says: "Thank you for the common sense remarks. I am disgusted at the way our opposition uses these fiascos to take the focus off anything they do not want to be front and centre, the poverty creeping into everyone's lives (except the wealthy), Australia's decline, the question of the Aboriginal Voice to Parliament. I feel so sad Australia has developed into such a moral vacuum and a parliament of puppets."
"It does matter," says Graeme. "There were allegations a rape occurred in Parliament, in a senior minister's office, within shouting distance of the prime minister's office and we still do not know what exactly happened. It cannot just be dropped. Sure, many people are on Struggle Street and that needs to be addressed. But surely both can be done."
Elisabeth says: "The problem the opposition has is that the country is reaping the whirlwind of the neoliberal theocracy that has held conservative politics in its thrall for 50 years. How can they criticise what they created? They have no place to go and nothing to offer. So it's culture wars and conspiracy theories instead of offering genuine alternatives. Winning is now defined as defeating the enemy on the stage of Parliament. Actors playing to each other. The rest of us are irrelevant. So much needs to be done to repair the damage done to society. So little is being achieved."
"The vast majority want to know why Higgins was given a payout, not about the political machinations behind it all," says Ross. "Mark Dreyfuss loses credibility saying that by attacking the settlement, victims of alleged assaults won't come forward in future. Does this mean that a woman in Western Sydney who accuses her employer of raping her will receive a payout even though nothing has been proven?"
Rachel says: "This saga shows that the LNP cares very little about Brittany Higgins' mental health. The cruelty of the current politicking must be having a detrimental effect on her. I couldn't care less if Katy Gallagher knew about it. She wasn't bandying it about in the media. I'm so sick of the opposition trying to point score. This is what I care about: I live and work in Kalkarindji and Katherine, Northern Territory. The cost of a packet of Tim Tams is $8. Diesel is $3.33 per litre. Everything is very expensive. Nobody thinks about us out here in the remote country. For years I've never heard a mention of how expensive it is to live out here. Tell the city folk about that, please."
