AR Rahman on what he learned at MIT, the use of AI in music

Music composer AR Rahman said artificial intelligence (AI) is here to stay and makes certain tasks easier, but added that it won’t take away jobs. Appearing on The Good Time Show, Rahman also said he enrolled in an AI course at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In recent years, the legendary composer has given music to the film with Tiger Shroff Heropanti 2, Mimi and Arangi Re. He attended the Cannes Film Festival in May this year.

“I took a course at MIT on imaging, AI and cluster computing. It was helpful,” Rahman told Good Time Show hosts Aarthi and Sriram, adding that he was enrolled in the course to understand how the latest technologies can be integrated into music.

When asked if AI could change the way music is currently composed, Rahman said, “I don’t think AI is going to take over in any significant way, maybe one or two composers can use it. Any lyrics, or whatever, need to be consistent and must come from a human being.”

“If you have to be human in every aspect, then you make decisions that are good for human beings, good for humanity, good for people, good for creativity, and you bring beauty to the world,” said- he added.

Speaking in more detail about the use of AI, the composer said, “Some things, like sorting samples, are really cool. AI does all these things that took years to compile.”

The Oscar-winning composer is known for his music in films such as Roja, Bombay, Jodhaa Akbar, Rank of Basanti, Lagaan among several others.

It is also the recipient of some of the biggest awards, including two Grammys – Best Compilation Soundtrack for a Motion Picture (for Slumdog Millionaire) and Best Movie Song (for Jai Ho). Rahman has also received six national awards and several Filmfare Awards from Bollywood and the Southern Film Industry.

Rahman recently made headlines after his eldest daughter Khatija Rahman got married to sound engineer Riyasdeen Shaik Mohamed. The wedding took place in the presence of family members and close friends in May this year.