Brave New World? A major report warns generative AI is already costing creators their livelihoods
A new report, Brave New World? Justice for creators in the age of GenAI, lands with a clear message: unregulated generative AI is already cutting into creative work in the UK. Built on evidence from more than 10,000 creators across illustration, writing, music, photography and performance, it shows jobs going, commissions cancelled, and work scraped without consent.
The stakes are bigger than a single sector. The UK's creative industries contribute £124.6 billion to the economy. If we don't protect the people who make the work, we risk hollowing out the culture and commerce they support.
What the evidence shows
Creators are being undercut by systems trained on their work without permission. Budgets are shrinking. Briefs are being replaced by prompts. Many are asking a blunt question: can a creative career still be viable if your work is used to compete against you?
The Association of Illustrators (AOI), together with the Independent Society of Musicians, the Society of Authors, Equity and the Association of Photographers, co-published the report and gathered in Granary Square, King's Cross, to make the case in public. Illustrators Benji Davies, Chris Haughton, Ged Adamson, Momoko Abe, Simona Ciraolo and AOI Board Member Jhinuk Sarkar were among those taking a stand.
Fair tech, not free-for-all
AOI CEO Rachel Hill says the message is simple: unregulated generative AI is already harming creative work and the businesses that rely on it. If government is serious about supporting this sector, it has to protect creators' rights and keep human creativity at the centre of culture and the economy.
Baroness Kidron OBE calls it a matter of justice. What's being taken in plain sight is private property protected by law. It's not the government's to give away.
The CLEAR Framework for AI
At the core of the report is a practical path forward. The CLEAR Framework sets out five principles that let innovation move without stripping value from creators.
- Consent: No training or use of creative work without permission.
- Licensing: Clear, enforceable terms and payment for use.
- Ethical training data: Clean, documented datasets with provenance.
- Accountability: Auditable inputs, model disclosures and shared responsibility.
- Remuneration: Return value to the people who made the work.
This isn't anti-technology
Tools that support the process-admin help, research, reference, file prep-can be useful. The line is crossed when systems built on scraped creative work are then used to replace the people who made that work possible. The future should be built with creatives, not at their expense.
What you can do now
- Update your contracts. Require consent for any AI training or synthetic use of your work, define acceptable use, credit, derivatives, and payment terms.
- Use platforms that respect opt-outs and provenance. Prefer tools that disclose data sources and offer content credentials.
- Protect your portfolio. Add metadata and content credentials where available, and keep dated records of your work.
- Join your trade body. AOI, SoA, ISM, Equity and AOP are coordinating action and legal guidance.
- Track infringements. Document evidence and send takedown or licensing requests as needed.
- Adopt AI on your terms. Use it to speed admin and drafts; keep the final creative judgment human.
Who's behind the report
The report is published by a coalition within the Creators' Rights Alliance: the Independent Society of Musicians, the Society of Authors, Equity, the Association of Photographers and the AOI. Their CEOs-Deborah Annetts (ISM), Anna Ganley (SoA), Isabelle Doran (AOP) and Rachel Hill (AOI)-are aligned on one message: fairness first.
Read the report and take action
You can learn more and access the report via the AOI's website. Visit AOI
For sector-wide updates and resources on creators' rights, see the Creators' Rights Alliance. Creators' Rights Alliance
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