Listening

Warm Up

Helpful Words and Phrases

Listen and repeat.

  1. regulate
    • ex. The company created rules to regulate the use of personal mobile phones during work hours.
  2. replicate
    • ex. The AI program can replicate well-known paintings.
  3. copyright
    • ex. Many popular paintings are not protected by copyright. People can copy and sell them.
  4. plagiarism
    • ex. Teachers can use some computer programs to check for plagiarism in students’ work.
  5. threatened
    • ex. Many jobs are threatened because of technology. Nowadays, machines replace human workers in several industries.

Article

Read the article below and answer your tutor's questions.

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Country singers, romance novelists, video game artists, and voice actors are requesting the U.S. government to regulate AI. This is to protect their careers. Someone expressed fear that AI could replicate their work. And thousands have also expressed the same concern to the U.S. Copyright Office.

Artists are afraid of AI, but technology companies are happy with the current system. It allows them to copy published works. And this can help them improve their AI systems. The U.S. top copyright official Shira Perlmutter told the Associated Press she’s listening to everyone. Her office is considering changes in copyright policies since there are a lot of new AI tools.

Lilla Zuckerman, responsible for a television show, compares AI to a “plagiarism machine.” She believes that Hollywood should declare war on AI before Hollywood is controlled by greedy technology companies. She thinks that these companies want to remove human talent out of entertainment. Songwriter Marc Beeson said that the music industry is also threatened. He said AI has the potential to do good, but without proper management, it could damage American art forms.

This material was based on an article by The Associated Press.

Discussion

Choose a topic and discuss the questions with your tutor.

AI

  • Do you like using AI tools? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • Imagine you are a famous writer or artist. How would you feel about AI using your original work to create a new one without your permission? Why? Discuss.
  • Do you think AI can really replace humans? Why or why not? Discuss.

Copyright

  • Do you think copyright laws and policies limit the development of new AI tools? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • Imagine there are no copyright laws and policies. What would happen? Discuss.
  • What do you think about having one organization that manages and regulates copyright all over the world? Discuss.