Queen’s Brian May outraged by AI-generated image of…

Sir Brian May, the legendary guitarist for Queen, has publicly voiced his outrage after using Meta AI to generate an image of his late bandmate, Freddie Mercury, and the cover of the 1980 album The Game. The resulting output prompted May to demand government intervention to halt the expansion of AI infrastructure in the United Kingdom.

What happened

While testing the capabilities of Meta AI, Sir Brian May prompted the tool to recreate the cover of Queen’s 1980 record, The Game. The guitarist was deeply unimpressed with the generated result, which he shared on Instagram as a critique of the technology's current quality and broader societal implications. Expressing concern over the environmental and cultural impact of the technology, May argued that the price of such development is too high and specifically called upon Andy Burnham to take action against the construction of data centers in the UK.

May’s reaction highlights the growing divide within the music industry regarding generative technology. While some artists, such as Linda Perry, have suggested that AI should be embraced as a tool to facilitate creative work, others like Nia Archives have dismissed it as a fleeting trend. For May, the incident served as a catalyst for a broader warning about the risks posed by unchecked artificial intelligence, urging authorities to intervene before such developments become irreversible.