Robert O'Donoghue (Dublin Fingal West, Labour)
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64. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will enact legislation to enforce paying of royalties for musical artists whose compositions are used for training on artificial intelligence systems; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10142/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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In Ireland, the legal landscape concerning the use of copyrighted music for AI training involves several provisions.

The Copyright and Related Rights Act 2000 (as amended) provides robust protection for copyrighted works, including musical compositions. Generative AI, also known as general-purpose AI, is the use of AI to create new content like text, images, music, audio and video. It is based on models developed using very large datasets. Artists and rightsholders can negotiate licensing agreements with AI developers, specifying terms for using musical works in AI training datasets. Such agreements include compensation structures and usage rights. Collective management organisations (CMOs) are collaborating with technology firms to protect copyrighted music. For example, the Irish Music Rights Organisation (IMRO) aims to empower members to license AI uses of their works, addressing challenges posed by generative AI technologies.

Under certain conditions, Irish law allows temporary acts of reproduction that are transient or incidental and integral to a technological process through the Text and Data Mining (TDM) exception. As an EU Member State, Ireland aligns with this provision which originates in the Copyright in the Digital Single Market Directive (Directive (EU) 2019/790). Rightsholders can opt out from this exception.

On 1 August 2024, the European Artificial Intelligence Act (Regulation (EU)2024/1689) entered into force across the EU. The Act aims to foster responsible artificial intelligence development and deployment in the EU. The AI Act includes provisions relating to generative AI which will apply from 2 August 2025. From that date, providers of general-purpose AI models must document technical information about the model for the purpose of providing that information upon request to the AI Office and national competent authorities. They must also put in place a policy to comply with Union law on copyright and related rights and draw up and make publicly available a sufficiently detailed summary about the content used for training the model.

Last May the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (DETE) conducted a public consultation on national implementation of the AI Act. Respondents widely acknowledged the need to identify and address potential synergies between the implementation of the EU AI Act and other related EU regulations and directives including copyright and related rights. Effective implementation of the AI Act will require close coordination and information-sharing between the various EU and national competent authorities and supervisory bodies responsible for these different regulatory frameworks.

At present, the EU AI Office is working with experts to develop a Code of Practice on Generative AI, and there is are working group engaged specifically on the topics of copyright and transparency. This Code of Practice is due to be completed in May and should provide further detail on these obligations.

Given the fact that the EU AI Act is still being implemented at EU and national level, and the fact that Ireland as an EU member, is limited in its ability to legislate in matters in areas affecting the single market, at present, it is not planned to enact further legislation on this matter.

However, Ireland, individually and in its capacity as an EU Member State is continually adapting to emerging challenges. This involves consideration of aspects relating to legislation, policies and enforcement. DETE engages with industry representatives, artists, and other rightsholders, in discussions in order to balance technological innovation with the protection of creators' rights.