Rock band quits Spotify over Daniel Ek’s ties to “AI battle tech”
San Francisco art-rock band Deerhoof have announced plans to remove their music from Spotify in the wake of CEO Daniel Ek’s ties to AI military weapons company Helsing.
Last month saw Ek leading a €600 million round of investment into Helsing, a company of which he is also chairman.
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Now, in a statement posted to social media, Deerhoof writes about its “easy” decision to quit Spotify, explaining: “We don’t want our music killing people. We don’t want our success being tied to AI battle tech.”
“We are privileged that it was a pretty easy decision for us,” the band say. “Spotify only pays a pittance anyway, and we earn a lot more from touring.
“But we also understand that other artists and labels do rely on Spotify for a bigger chunk of their income, and don’t judge those who can’t make the same move in the short term.”
The statement continues: “AI battle tech is clearly emerging as the hot new big ticket item for the super-rich,” they go on.
“It’s increasingly clear that the military and police exist primarily as the security detail for the billionaire class. The more of the killing you can get computers to do, the better your bottom line.
“Computerised targeting, computerised extermination, computerised destabilisation for profit, successfully tested on the people of Gaza, also finally solves the perennial inconvenience to war-makers – It takes human compassion and morality out of the equation.”
Deerhoof predicts Spotify will “flush itself down the toilet”, adding “artists will want to leave this already widely-hated data-mining scam masquerading as a ‘music company’”.
“It’s creepy for users and crappy for artists. Music-making lasts forever but this or that digital get-rich-quick scheme is sure to become obsolete.”
In response to those who tout the discoverability offered by Spotify, the band explain: “If the price of ‘discoverability’ is letting oligarchs fill the globe with computerised weaponry, we’re going to pass on the supposed benefits.”
At the time of writing, Deerhoof’s music remains available on Spotify. However, the group say they are working to remove it “as soon as possible”.
“We want to thank our various labels for their support on this tricky decision. The grunt work of pulling content off of Spotify is something they’re now tasked with, and they are sharing the financial hit. We know we are asking them to make a sacrifice, and it means a lot to us.”
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Learn more about Helsing.
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