Experts Demand Protection of Indigenous Art from AI Exploitation

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A coalition of legal and creative experts has called on the Australian federal government to safeguard Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural works from being exploited by artificial intelligence (AI) systems, as the Productivity Commission considers allowing tech companies to use copyrighted material without consent or compensation. The proposal, outlined in the Commission’s interim report, Harnessing Data and Digital Technology, released on August 6, 2025, suggests a text and data mining (TDM) exemption to the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth), potentially enabling AI firms to scrape Indigenous stories, art, music, and journalism, according to National Indigenous Times.

The Australian creative sector, contributing $112 billion annually to the economy, faces significant risks from this proposal, particularly for First Nations creators already battling inauthentic art. The Productivity Commission’s 2022 Aboriginal arts and crafts report noted that 75% of Indigenous-style goods are produced by non-Indigenous entities, a problem exacerbated by AI-generated imitations flooding platforms like Adobe and eBay, per Crikey. Leah Flanagan, National Director of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Music Office (NATSIMO), criticized the Commission’s stance, stating that it contradicts their earlier call for action against fake Indigenous art by allowing “digital theft” of Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP), as reported by Limelight.

Opposition figures, including Shadow Productivity Minister Andrew Bragg, have rejected the TDM exemption, arguing it prioritizes tech giants over creators. Bragg told The Guardian on August 7, 2025, that Australia risks becoming “uncompetitive” without protecting intellectual property. The Australian Publishers Association (APA) warned that such exemptions would undermine the $90 billion creative industry, with Chief Executive Officer Patrizia Di Biase-Dyson stating that Australian stories should not be “free inputs for corporate AI systems,” per The Guardian.

The Albanese Government, through Attorney-General Michelle Rowland, emphasized maintaining a strong copyright framework aligned with the Revive cultural policy, but has not committed to rejecting the exemption, per ArtsHub. Experts advocate for Indigenous-led protocols, like those in Creative Australia’s 2020 guidelines, to ensure consent, control, and compensation for ICIP use in AI development, safeguarding cultural heritage.