AI Champion for the Creative Industries publishes AI adoption plan - our response

24th June 2026

Last week the government published an independent AI adoption plan for the creative industries from the AI Champion for the Creative Industries, Sally Davies. It aims to increase AI use in the creative industries to boost productivity and growth. 

However, this plan rests on the potential of AI to increase productivity over any concrete evidence. It draws heavily on research conducted with creative-adjacent businesses rather than from the individual producers of creative content - and yet, it is these individual creators, the backbone of the creative industries, who will be most affected by AI adoption. 

Without engaging with creators, a third of whom are freelancers, conclusions and policy recommendations will struggle to meet their needs. 

The AI Champion wants the creative industries to trust AI technology, but there is no acknowledgement of how creators’ rights have been undermined by AI developers, and that creator commissions and incomes are being slashed as a result of AI adoption. The call for a “more mature conversation” is insulting to the creators whose livelihoods are disappearing before their eyes. What is the just transition for the 2.4 million workers in the creative industries? 

Referring to “unresolved questions around copyright and AI”, Sally Davies says that “the issues do not need to be fully resolved before creators adopt AI.” We disagree. Over the last few years we have seen very little progress to address the copyright infringement issues. Neither tech companies nor governments appear interested in addressing the unresolved questions.

The recommendations to the government refer to existing plans on AI and copyright - including the upcoming AI labelling taskforce and the digital replicas consultation, but no-where mention of rights enforcement. It is very difficult to build trust when the difficult questions are not on the table.

CRA Chair and Society of Authors’ CEO, Anna Ganley says: 

“Protecting individual creators’ rights and livelihoods should be the foundation of any responsible AI adoption plan for the creative industries. At the very least, this means enforcing copyright law, remuneration through licensing, and data input transparency measures. 

Our members’ research shows that thousands of creators across the industries have lost significant work opportunities and income as a result of generative AI. From musicians to authors, illustrators to photographers and voice actors, many no longer believe their career is viable as a result of generative AI.

This is a serious and urgent issue - especially given that approximately a third of creators are freelancers without the protections and security afforded by employment. 

We would welcome the opportunity to engage with the AI Champion for the Creative Industries, as part of her sector engagement on the responsible AI framework.”