We’ve been anticipating robots taking over the Earth for some time now. The Matrix series predicted it — and The Terminator franchise, even earlier.

While we don’t have intelligent humanoid machines walking around wreaking havoc (yet), we do have something close: artificial intelligence.

I don’t have to tell you that AI is all around us now. A significant portion of what you consume daily on social media is AI-generated (not this article though — this one was crafted the old-school way). AI can now create images and videos from just a few words. Sure, sometimes we need to refine the prompt a few times to get a good result, but we’re almost there. It’s evolving at an impressive pace.

Which brings us to some big questions — one of which is: should AI be used as a tool in creating music (or any form of art)?

It’s a tricky one. On one hand, I’d rather handle the composing, arranging, recording, and other parts of music production myself. On the other hand, I’d welcome AI’s help with mixing and mastering — just help, not a takeover.

Another way to look at it is using AI to take care of the mundane day-to-day stuff — doing the dishes, laundry — so I actually have more time to dedicate to my craft, whether that’s music, photography, painting, or anything else.

I once read a quote that went something like:

I think a lot of people can relate to that.

Personally, I always envisioned AI as something like JARVIS from Iron Man — telling me the time, my schedule for the day, traffic on my usual route, and a summary of the news. A helpful assistant, not a replacement.

When it comes to music, the question becomes: is AI-generated art real art? Can AI-generated music ever win a Grammy? Can it trigger emotions the way a traditionally composed track can? What about AI DJs? That’s another tricky one. Imagine AI DJing with the perfect beat and key match, perfect phrasing and levels (no more redlining). That discussion is akin to Pandora’s

But right now, we have more questions than answers.

As with most things, it’s subjective. Some will use AI to create melodies and drum patterns, while sticking to traditional mixing methods. Others will prefer composing entire tracks by hand but use AI to handle technical aspects. And of course, some will rely entirely on AI to create a whole track from start to finish.

It’s inevitable.

At this year’s DAW Fest, we’re going to cover how AI is driving the Music Industry to evolve so register now if you haven’t already!

What are your thoughts on AI?