David Cope, Godfather of A.I. Music, Is Dead at 83
The New York TimesMonday, June 2, 2025 at 8:57:49 PM
David Cope, a pioneering figure in AI-generated music, has passed away at 83. Back in the 1980s, he created EMI, an algorithm that composed music in the styles of classical composers like Bach and Mozart—stirring up fierce debates about whether machines could truly be creative. Cope, who seemed to thrive on controversy, once admitted he wanted the backlash from traditional composers. His work forced people to rethink what creativity even means.
Editor’s Note: Cope’s legacy isn’t just about the notes his AI wrote—it’s about the big, messy questions he forced us to confront. Can a machine make art? Does creativity require a human soul? These debates are even more relevant now, as AI tools like ChatGPT and DALL-E blur the lines between human and machine output. Love it or hate it, his work shaped how we talk about AI’s role in culture.
— Curated via WP Now’s
