Road to Consent, Credit, and Compensation Is Paved with Cooperation

September 1, 2026

Ben Kessler  -  Ben Kessler, AFM Director of Government Affairs

Everyone at the AFM, and across the music advocacy community, talks about consent, credit, and compensation in artificial intelligence development. If you’re unfamiliar with the policy position turned mantra, it has a simple meaning. First, for AI systems to use copyrightable works, developers and users must receive permission from all creators. A so-called “opt-out” system is not sufficient to adequately protect our rights. Second, all artists whose work an AI system was trained on must receive credit for the AI-generated products. Third, all musicians must have the right to negotiate and receive fair compensation when their work is used in AI development.

The federal legislative package the AFM supports to make consent, credit, and compensation a reality includes, but is not limited to, the TRAIN Act, the CLEAR Act, and the Protect Working Musicians Act. The TRAIN Act gives good faith rights holders subpoena power to ascertain whether their work is part of AI data sets. The CLEAR Act establishes a registration requirement for AI developers, mandating an accessible database for creators. The Protect Working Musicians Act establishes an antitrust exemption to allow independent musicians, songwriters, and labels to collectively negotiate both with AI developers and streaming platforms. These proposals are essential if Congress is to develop meaningful safeguards for creative professionals.

Federal legislation is only one piece of the puzzle. If we are to be successful, we must not only prevail in the halls of Congress; creators and rights holders must also win in the courts. There are over 100 pending copyright-related AI cases before judges across the country. No matter who is a party to these cases, the outcomes will affect all musicians for decades. AFM is a proud member of the Copyright Alliance, which allows our union and the entire creative community to speak together with one voice in briefs to the court.

And last, but certainly not least, there will only be consent, credit, and compensation for working musicians in AI development if we win at the bargaining table. This is where coordination between AFM Government Affairs and our Electronic Media Services Division (EMSD) is so important. I am incredibly grateful for EMSD Director John Painting, Assistant Director Rebecca Gurnee, and their entire team. It is not simply their institutional knowledge, experience, and expertise, but the collegiality and commitment that they bring to work every single day.

One example of the way Government Affairs and EMSD work together is assessing legislative proposals. The standard for an AFM endorsement is whether the proposal benefits all musicians. We will not support a bill simply because it appears favorable on the surface or is well-intentioned. Making that assessment requires a deep understanding of the nuances of our industry. Those careful decisions are always made with AFM President Tino Gagliardi’s approval and guidance and, when appropriate, with EMSD’s insights.

Painting is seemingly always available for a phone call, quick or otherwise. I know I can always count on him for an unvarnished review of the facts. The information I get from EMSD is always good enough for me to take back to a coalition partner or congressional office. That kind of steadfast reliability is often hard to come by in the policy world in which I spend my time. It is reassuring to know that, if I do my job in DC, Painting and EMSD are leading the way toward consent, credit, and compensation seemingly everywhere else.

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