AI and Music Take Center Stage at Asia’s “All That Matters” Summit

Every September, leading up to the Formula One race, Singapore hosts All That Matters, a conference where thinkers, creators, and entrepreneurs from across Asia gather to discuss the latest trends in sports, tech, marketing, gaming, and music. I try to attend every year because, in many ways, Asia is living in the future. (Actually, scratch that—they’re living in the present; it’s parts of the West clinging to the past. But I digress.)

This year, artificial intelligence dominated the conversation, particularly in the music space. Here’s what I took away.

The Internet Is Shifting Again

The internet we’ve grown accustomed to is evolving rapidly. Even browser wars are returning, fueled by AI-enhanced search engines. I’ve been testing Comet, a new browser from the creators of the AI program Perplexity. While it’s still rough around the edges, I can see it rivaling Google, which itself is integrating AI through Gemini, competing with Microsoft’s Co-Pilot.

Music-Creating AI Is About to Explode

The last 25 years of music have been about consumption: CDs → MP3s → piracy → streaming → vinyl. The next decade, however, will be defined by creation.

AI music programs like Suno and Anthropic are improving at generating music from user prompts. Although legal battles with labels are ongoing, licensing deals are expected soon, meaning AI will increasingly rely on human-created music to learn. By next year, these programs could analyze trillions of data points, producing music that is more realistic—and emotional.

One key trend: simpler user interfaces. Programs will soon require minimal instructions—perhaps just humming a melody—and AI will create a full track.

Potential Benefits for Musicians

AI could empower artists and fans in unprecedented ways:

• Fan collaboration: Fans could contribute directly to an artist’s intellectual property and participate in “world-building,” potentially even earning from co-creation.

• New licensing models: Artists may benefit from agreements between labels and AI companies, potentially earning more than from streaming alone.

• Indie and emerging artists: These creators may gain the most, as AI gives access to global musical influences and reduces production costs, potentially approaching zero.

• Democratization of music creation: With AI, the number of people making music could skyrocket, further expanding the creative ecosystem.

There’s even a possibility that AI could increase the value of human-created music by creating contrast and novelty.

The Downsides and Open Questions

Every promising technology comes with risks. In the AI music space, challenges include:

• Impact on traditional instruments and studios: Will people still invest thousands of hours learning to play an instrument?

• Copyright and fair use: How will AI handle unintentional duplication or derivation of existing works?

• Discovery and quality control: With potentially billions of songs created each year, how will listeners find meaningful music? Will highly average music dominate?

• Ethics in the industry: Should AI-generated artists sign recording contracts? (Yes—it's already happening, e.g., Xania Monet.)

The consensus at the conference was clear: AI in music is moving fast, and while questions far outnumber answers, ignoring it could be perilous.