Hundreds of students at Berklee College of Music in Boston have objected to a new class on generative AI and songwriting, turning a campus course into a wider argument about whether music education should make room for tools many artists view as a threat. The dispute centres on "Bots and Beats: AI and the Future of Songwriting", a two-credit offering that has drawn a petition demanding Berklee end what critics see as the school’s embrace of generative AI.

The petition, which had gathered 418 signatures by Tuesday, argues that systems such as ChatGPT and related creative tools are built on the unauthorised use of artists’ work and could damage both livelihoods and the culture of the industry. Alumni and current students left sharply worded comments beneath it, saying they felt let down by an institution long associated with training working musicians. One graduate told the petition page that the move was "very unfortunate behaviour from an esteemed creative/music college", while another said they would be angry if asked to rely on AI instead of developing their own craft.

Berklee’s course description takes a more ambivalent line. It says students will examine how AI can assist songwriting while also considering its limits, and will study the technology’s effects on the music business and on the prospects for future composers and performers. The college has also set out broader guiding principles for AI and machine learning, saying its approach should reflect its values and help artists navigate a changing industry. According to Berklee, the school has a responsibility to prepare students for technologies reshaping the creative economy.

The controversy at Berklee fits into a much larger unease across the arts, where musicians, writers and other creators have worried that generative systems could flatten originality, dilute training and concentrate value away from human labour. Reporting by the Boston Globe has shown similar concerns among faculty and students over the use of AI tools in creative classes, while the college’s own statements suggest it sees the issue less as a choice between technology and tradition than as a test of how to teach future professionals to work within both.

Source Reference Map

Inspired by headline at: [1]

Sources by paragraph:

Source: Noah Wire Services