The Productivity Commission is under fire for failing to consult artists or model the impact of a key recommendation in its AI report on the creative industry, as the creative community urges the government not to allow data mining exemptions for big tech companies to train AI models.

First Nations rapper Adam Briggs said it would be “hard to get genie back in the bottle” if Australia allowed companies to access Australian creativity without fair pay.

“Why is it a radical notion that artists should be compensated for their work?”

At a hearing for the national cultural policy inquiry in Canberra, examining the impact of AI on Australia’s creative landscape, senators lambasted the commission and accused it of “waving the white flag” on protecting artists.

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