Sally Davies named AI champion for the UK's creative industries
The UK's Department of Culture, Media and Sport has appointed Sally Davies, Managing Director of Abbey Road Studios, as the AI champion for the creative industries. Her brief is clear: accelerate responsible adoption of AI and help the UK turn AI's potential into real economic growth and jobs.
Why this matters for creatives
Abbey Road isn't just a legendary studio. It also builds new tools through its innovation arm, Abbey Road REDD Labs, and sits within Universal Music Group (UMG) - a company publicly pushing responsible AI.
UMG has already struck AI-related agreements with:
- BandLab
- Klay Vision
- Meta
- Nvidia
- Pro-Rata
- SoundLabs
- Splice
- Stability AI
- TikTok
- Udio
- YouTube
That momentum signals more practical tools, clearer licensing paths, and better safeguards for artists, producers, designers, and studios.
What Sally Davies said
"I'm truly honoured to be appointed AI champion for the creative industries at such a pivotal moment for our sector and for society. The creative industries have always thrived by embracing new tools and technologies, and ensuring we continue to do so with care, responsibility and creativity has never been more important."
"Abbey Road Studios has a long history of bringing artists, technologists and innovators together to push boundaries in ways that serve creativity first. I'm excited to draw on that experience, and the studio's track record, to help shape a future where AI supports and strengthens the creative ecosystem."
"I'm very much looking forward to working closely with DCMS, colleagues across government, and partners from across the creative industries in the year ahead."
Government's view
Ian Murray, Minister of State at the Departments of Culture, Media and Sport and Science, Innovation and Technology, said: "We're delighted to announce that Sally Davies, Managing Director of Abbey Road Studios, has been appointed as the AI Champion for the Creative Industries. Sally brings years of experience championing creativity, innovation, and collaboration and will represent the industry's interests as we work to ensure responsible AI adoption benefits creative industries across the UK."
What this could mean for your work
- Clearer guidelines on consent, credits, and compensation when AI is in the loop.
- More creator-friendly tools integrated into existing workflows (DAWs, design apps, video suites).
- New collaboration channels between tech platforms and rights holders for safer experimentation.
- Opportunities to prototype with labs and innovation teams focused on artist-first outcomes.
How to get ready
- Audit your pipeline: note where ideation, editing, versioning, or mastering slows you down; test one AI tool per bottleneck.
- Set guardrails: decide what data you'll use, how you'll credit sources, and where human review is non-negotiable.
- Pilot, don't overhaul: run short experiments on a single track, asset, or scene; measure time saved and quality.
- Protect your work: use watermarking/metadata and keep clean, dated archives of stems, assets, and prompts.
- Upskill your team: align on shared vocab, file standards, and version control so collaboration stays tight.
Bottom line: this appointment signals practical support for creators who want AI that respects rights, improves output, and grows careers - not just headlines.
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