---

AI in Music and the Challenges: An Expert Report on Excite Audio’s Bloom KSHMR and the Evolving Music Technology Landscape

Executive Summary

This report offers an in-depth analysis of Excite Audio’s Bloom KSHMR instrument’s strategic positioning within the dynamic music technology landscape. Bloom KSHMR, developed in collaboration with renowned artist KSHMR, stands out for its unique value proposition: the delivery of authentic Indian music sounds, meticulously recorded by human musicians.¹ This approach sharply contrasts with the growing proliferation of artificial intelligence (AI)-generated content, which has faced significant challenges related to copyright, authenticity, and artist reputation, as evidenced by incidents of AI-generated songs appearing on deceased artists’ Spotify pages.²

The analysis demonstrates that Bloom KSHMR is not just another virtual synthesizer, but a product that embodies a narrative of valuing human artistry and cultural integrity in an era increasingly shaped by automation. Its accessible pricing strategy, especially the $5 Lite version, aims for broad adoption, democratizing access to high-quality, culturally specific sounds.¹ In parallel, the music industry is witnessing the transformative potential of Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) processing for audio, promising unprecedented processing levels that can enable more complex and realistic instruments.⁴ However, the rise of AI also raises urgent ethical and legal questions about authorship and intellectual property, with the U.S. Copyright Office reaffirming that works created

exclusively by AI are not copyrightable.⁵ Ultimately, the report underscores the enduring importance of human creativity and cultural expression, suggesting that the future of music technology lies in tools that enhance, rather than replace, the human element, ensuring both innovation and ethical responsibility.

Introduction: Bloom KSHMR – A New Sonic Palette for Modern Production

Excite Audio, in collaboration with acclaimed artist, producer, DJ, and sound designer KSHMR, has launched the Bloom KSHMR instrument, with the stated goal of integrating the sounds of Indian music into any Digital Audio Workstation (DAW).¹ This release comes at a time of rapid evolution in the music technology landscape, characterized by exponential advancements in artificial intelligence for music generation, increasing demands for processing power, and ongoing debates about authenticity, copyright, and artist legacies.

Bloom KSHMR positions itself not merely as a new virtual synthesizer, but as a significant product that embodies a counter-narrative to the rise of AI-generated content, prioritizing human artistry and cultural authenticity. The instrument’s emphasis on “high-quality sounds and loops that were meticulously recorded by handpicked musicians from the regions where the instruments originated” ¹ establishes a direct contrast with the emerging trend of AI-generated music. This music, often created without human permission or intervention, has been described as “AI schlock bot” and has generated considerable legal and ethical issues.² By highlighting human recording and regional authenticity, Excite Audio is implicitly differentiating Bloom KSHMR from AI-generated content. This is a deliberate marketing choice that taps into a potential market demand for “real” or “ethically sourced” sounds, offering a clear alternative to often controversial AI productions. The differentiation is not limited to sound quality but extends to the

provenance of the sound.

This strategic emphasis on human artistry and cultural specificity (Indian music) can allow Excite Audio to carve out a unique niche, potentially becoming a leader in providing culturally authentic and ethically sourced sound libraries. By specializing in human-recorded and culturally specific sounds, Excite Audio avoids the pitfalls of AI training on copyrighted material and the subsequent legal ambiguities.⁵ Genuinely capturing the nuance and expression of traditional instruments often requires human performance, something AI struggles to authentically replicate without extensive and ethically sourced training data. This creates a defensible market position where human expertise is paramount, fostering trust and potentially attracting a loyal user base concerned with the broader implications of AI.

Product Deep Dive: Bloom KSHMR Features, Authenticity, and User Experience

Bloom KSHMR is an instrument that stands out for its core sound library and its approach to authenticity. It includes a variety of traditional Indian sounds, such as drum circles, tablas, sitars, bansuri flutes, and expressive vocal performances.¹ Excite Audio emphasizes that these sounds were “meticulously recorded by handpicked musicians from the regions where the instruments originated,” which demonstrates a strong commitment to authenticity and cultural expression.¹

In terms of software functionality, Bloom KSHMR is designed to be intuitive. Users can play the sounds using the white keys of a MIDI keyboard, while the black keys can be used to modify them in real-time. The software also offers additional features such as sample editing, modulation capabilities, a sequencer, and various effects. A notable feature is the ability to import custom samples via drag-and-drop, allowing for the creation of unique presets in addition to the 250 presets already provided by KSHMR.¹

Bloom KSHMR’s pricing strategy is remarkably accessible. The full version has an introductory price of £59 /€59/$59. However, a Lite version is available for just $5 until July 31st, 23:59 PST, by using a specific coupon code.¹ While the Lite version does not include FX modules and the ability to import custom samples, it still offers 75 presets and real-time sound tweaking capabilities. Its regular price is £29/€29/$29.¹ This simplicity makes the instrument accessible to producers of all levels, from beginners exploring new sounds to professionals requiring high-quality content from an experienced sound designer.¹ The collaboration with KSHMR, a “world-renowned artist, producer, DJ, and sound designer,” lends significant credibility and market appeal to the instrument.¹

Below is a detailed table outlining the key features and specifications of Bloom KSHMR:

Feature	Detail
Product Name	Bloom KSHMR
Developer	Excite Audio
Collaborator	KSHMR
Primary Sonic Focus	Traditional Indian Music
Instruments Included	Drum circles, tablas, sitars, bansuri flutes, vocal performances
Sound Origin	Meticulously recorded by handpicked musicians from the instruments’ regions of origin
Software Features	Sample editing, modulation, sequencer, effects, custom sample import (full version)
Presets	250 (Full Version), 75 (Lite Version)
Real-time Control	Yes (MIDI keyboard white and black keys)
Full Version Price	£59 /€59/$59
Lite Version Price	$5 (promo until July 31), £29/€29/$29 (regular price)
Compatibility	VST3, AU, and AAX plugin formats (implied for modern virtual synthesizers, though not explicitly detailed in the source)

The dual pricing strategy, especially the $5 Lite version, represents a highly effective market penetration tactic. It significantly lowers the barrier to entry, allowing a wide range of producers to experience the unique sounds. This approach has the potential to convert a large user base to the full version and foster community engagement around Indian music production. The $5 price point for the Lite version is exceptionally low for a professional-grade instrument, making it an impulse purchase for many. This strategy aims to maximize downloads and user experimentation, banking on the quality and uniqueness of the sounds to drive conversions to the full version. It’s an approach that prioritizes volume and user base growth over initial profit margin.

By making authentic Indian sounds highly accessible, Excite Audio is not just creating a product but potentially fostering a new wave of cultural exchange and musical fusion. This democratizes access to sounds that would otherwise be difficult for many producers to acquire or incorporate. This accessibility, both in terms of price and ease of use, fills a gap in the market. It allows producers worldwide to experiment with and integrate Indian musical elements without the need for deep cultural knowledge or expensive traditional instruments. This can lead to a broader appreciation and integration of Indian music into mainstream or experimental genres, driving cross-cultural musical innovation and potentially influencing global sonic trends.

Market Positioning and Virtual Synthesizer Competitive Landscape

The virtual synthesizer market is highly competitive, characterized by the prevalence of virtual analog (VA) synthesizers and the increasing sophistication of physical modeling and sample-based instruments. In this landscape, Bloom KSHMR’s positioning warrants special attention.

A prominent example in the virtual synthesizer market is Universal Audio Anthem. While rated as a “great synth,” Anthem is criticized for its “high asking price” of $199 for a VA synth that “retreads the well-worn VA path.” Its strengths include great-sounding analog modeling, easy modulation, and “crunchy” effects. The noted limitations are its high cost and the fact that many users likely already own some form of VA synthesizer. In terms of features, Anthem is a dual-oscillator synth with oscillators that can morph between standard waveforms, including additional sub and noise options. It also incorporates an analog-modeled low-pass filter, lo-fi vintage effects, a step sequencer, two envelopes, and an LFO. Universal Audio offers Anthem as a standalone native plugin for $199, or as part of their Spark subscription, which starts at $19.99 per month, suggesting a strategy to drive subscription uptake. Alternatives mentioned include u-he Diva ($179), considered a classic VA and benchmark, u-he Zebra CM (free), and native DAW synths like Logic’s Alchemy or Live’s Analog.

In contrast, Excite Audio’s Bloom KSHMR distinguishes itself through its focus on authentic and culturally specific samples, an approach that differs significantly from the general-purpose analog modeling of synthesizers like Anthem. Bloom KSHMR’s aggressive pricing strategy is a key differentiator. This niche approach and accessible price point allow Bloom KSHMR to compete not just on features but also on unique sonic identity and value proposition, especially against more expensive, general-purpose synthesizers.

Below is a comparative table illustrating Bloom KSHMR’s positioning relative to some key virtual synthesizers in the market:

Feature	Bloom KSHMR	Universal Audio Anthem	u-he Diva	Native DAW Synths
Developer	Excite Audio	Universal Audio	u-he	(Various DAW Developers)
Primary Sound Character/Type	Indian Sample-based	Virtual Analog	Virtual Analog	Virtual Analog/Hybrid
Standalone Price	$59 (Full), $5 (Lite promo)	$199	$179	Included with DAW
Subscription Availability	No	Yes (UA Spark)	No	No (generally)
Unique Selling Points	Authentic Indian sounds, KSHMR collab, accessible price	High-quality analog modeling, Spark integration	Classic VA, market benchmark	Integrated, often feature-rich
Pros (per sources)	Authentic, expressive, intuitive, accessible 1	Great-sounding, easy modulation, “crunchy” effects	Classic VA, highly regarded	Seamless DAW integration
Cons (per sources)	Niche sound (potentially)	Expensive, “retreads well-worn VA path”	Expensive	May lack unique character

Bloom KSHMR’s highly accessible price point, particularly the $5 Lite version, represents a disruptive strategy in the virtual synthesizer market. While premium VA synths like UA Anthem target high-end producers or subscription models, Bloom KSHMR aims for broad adoption by lowering the financial barrier. This approach has the potential to capture a large segment of new or budget-conscious producers, expanding the overall market for specialized sound libraries. The $5 entry point for Bloom KSHMR is significantly lower than typical premium virtual synthesizers. This is not just a discount; it’s a strategic move to reach a broader demographic, including hobbyists, students, or producers in emerging markets who might not invest in a $100-$200 plugin. This high accessibility, combined with a niche, authentic sound, creates a unique value proposition that prioritizes volume and user base growth over initial per-unit profit margin, contrasting with Universal Audio’s strategy of driving Spark subscriptions through premium plugins.

The success of a niche, culturally specific offering like Bloom KSHMR at an accessible price point may signal a broader shift in the market. It suggests that producers are increasingly seeking unique, high-quality, and specialized sonic palettes that go beyond generic Western sounds or traditional synthesis. If Bloom KSHMR gains significant traction, it will indicate a strong demand for instruments that offer distinct cultural flavors and unique sonic identities. This could inspire other developers to explore similar culturally specific or highly specialized sound libraries, moving away from an “all-in-one” approach. This fragmentation would enrich the sonic options available to producers, fostering greater diversity in music production and potentially influencing new genre developments. It also indicates that authenticity in niche areas may become a more valuable differentiator than broad versatility.

The Broader Music Technology Ecosystem: Innovations and Industry Shifts

The music technology landscape is in constant flux, driven by innovations in both hardware and software. Two prominent areas of development are the leveraging of GPUs for audio processing and the increasing impact of artificial intelligence on music creation and distribution.

Leveraging GPU for Enhanced Audio Processing and Performance

Modern music production, with its complex plugin instruments such as analog modeling synthesizers, acoustic physical modeling, and experimental instruments that recreate physics, increasingly demands significant processing power. These advanced plugins heavily tax traditional CPUs, leading to performance issues when multiple instruments and effects are utilized in a DAW session.⁴

The proposed and explored solution is the utilization of the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) for audio processing. While GPUs traditionally handle graphics rendering, their unique parallel processing structure makes them suitable for other demanding tasks, including artificial intelligence, neural networks, and now, audio.⁴ Chris D, Head of Pro Audio Partnerships at GPU Audio, emphasizes that the GPU offers an “almost unbound level of processing” due to its ability to process in parallel. He illustrates this by comparing a CPU’s single lane for traffic to a GPU’s thousands of lanes, highlighting the GPU’s capacity to handle multiple processes simultaneously, unlike the sequential and limited nature of conventional DSP audio.⁴ Evan Mezeske of Anukari points out that GPUs, such as those in Apple’s M-series chips or from NVIDIA, are largely underutilized during audio work. This idle processing power could be harnessed to run more plugins or tracks concurrently, or to power single plugins that demand significant computational resources.⁴

While getting the GPU to process audio is not straightforward due to its fundamental differences from the CPU, developers like GPU Audio have invested years in research and development to overcome these challenges.⁴ Sinan Bokesoy, founder of sonicLAB, explains that he uses the GPU to calculate scene data, which then feeds audio calculations, leveraging the GPU’s efficiency for parallel scenic calculations without requiring low-level programming efforts.⁴ It’s important to note that music producers do not need specialized GPUs for audio processing; the modern GPU already present in their computers, such as NVIDIA chips or Apple’s M-series chips, is generally sufficient. GPU Audio recommends a minimum specification of NVIDIA Series 10 for Windows or M1+ for Apple, indicating that these are not the very latest hardware, making the technology accessible to a wider audience.⁴

Examples of plugins and tools that already leverage GPU processing include Audio Modeling’s SWAM line (physical-modeled orchestral instruments), Vienna Power House (convolution processes), Anukari 3D Physics Synthesizer (complex physical simulation), and sonicLAB’s Protean (additive/FM synthesis with particle physics).⁴ Looking to the future, developers see GPU audio processing as a significant part of music production’s evolution. Chris from GPU Audio states that GPUs are essential for “ultra low latencies, multi-channel spatial mixing, thousands of convolutions, and real-time machine learning.”⁴ He also highlights the scalability of GPUs and their potential for cloud processing, which could allow processing power to be shunted to another computer entirely, benefiting mobile devices with less powerful CPUs. Furthermore, GPU processing is seen as crucial for hardware applications, such as mixing desks performing complex spatial processing on live inputs, and for integrating cutting-edge AI and machine learning into audio workflows in real-time.⁴

The increasing adoption of GPU processing will fundamentally reshape the capabilities of virtual synthesizers and audio plugins. This advancement will remove current CPU limitations, allowing developers to create far more complex, realistic, and computationally intensive instruments, including highly detailed sample-based libraries or advanced physical modeling synthesizers that require accessing “trillions of samples per second.”⁴ If GPU processing becomes standard, the computational bottleneck for complex audio algorithms will largely be removed. This means that instruments like Bloom KSHMR, which rely on high-quality samples, could evolve to incorporate far more intricate real-time manipulation, advanced physical modeling of the instruments, or highly realistic spatialization without taxing the CPU. The “high memory bandwidth” of GPUs ⁴ is particularly relevant for sample-heavy instruments, allowing for faster loading and more complex real-time access to large sample libraries.

The widespread integration of GPU audio could democratize access to high-fidelity and complex sound design, as even mid-range computers will possess sufficient processing power. This could intensify competition in the premium sound library market, driving developers to further innovate in terms of realism, expressiveness, and unique sonic offerings, benefiting users with more powerful and diverse tools. As computational power becomes less of a restriction for the average user, the focus for developers will shift even further to the quality, uniqueness, and usability of sounds and features. This heightened competition may lead to an arms race in realism and expressiveness for sample-based and physical modeling instruments. For users, this means a future where the distinction between “high-end” and “mid-range” systems for audio production may become less stark, allowing more producers to leverage sophisticated tools and fostering greater creativity across the board.

The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Music Creation and Distribution

Artificial intelligence has generated both significant innovation and controversy in the music industry. One of the most alarming issues is the emergence of AI-generated songs on deceased artists’ official Spotify pages, without permission from their estates.² Cases like Blaze Foley, Guy Clark, and Dan Berk, where tracks like “Together” and “Happened To You” appeared with AI-generated images and without authenticity, raised serious concerns about artist reputations.² Craig McDonald, who manages Blaze Foley’s page, described the music as an “AI schlock bot” and criticized Spotify’s lack of safeguards.²

Spotify responded by removing the tracks for violating its Deceptive Content policy, attributing the issue to third-party distributors like SoundOn (owned by TikTok).² However, the industry and public criticized Spotify for its failures in vetting processes and content moderation, questioning the platform’s accountability in preventing fraud.²

The ethical and legal challenges of AI in music are profound, especially concerning the training of AI models. The central issue is the use of copyrighted material without permission or compensation.⁷ Germany’s GEMA, representing millions of creators globally, filed a lawsuit against Suno Inc. in January 2025, accusing the company of using its members’ works without consent and generating outputs “confusingly similar” to iconic tracks like “Daddy Cool” and “Mambo No. 5.”⁷ A major concern is the lack of transparency regarding AI training datasets, which makes it nearly impossible to verify ethical practices.⁷ Companies like Suno and Udio have argued their output is “transformative” and protected by fair use, a claim the music industry has vehemently rebutted.⁷

Beyond copyright, AI replication of an artist’s voice raises a debate about whether the voice should be protected as a personal privacy right or a commercial property right.⁸ Publicity rights, which focus on an individual’s persona, are particularly relevant when AI mimics an artist’s unique vocal traits.⁸ Consent is fundamental, for both living and deceased artists, regarding the use of their voice or creative work by AI. Examples like Mac Miller’s respectful posthumous release of “Circles” contrast with the legal threats faced by Drake for using AI-generated Tupac vocals and the AI-generated George Carlin podcast, which resulted in a permanent injunction.⁸

The copyrightability of AI-generated works is a central issue. The U.S. Copyright Office (USCO) has reaffirmed that works created exclusively by AI cannot be copyrighted, but works that combine human creativity with AI can be copyrighted if there is a “sufficient” amount of human expression.⁵ Prompt creation, by itself, is not considered sufficient for human authorship.⁵ The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) applauded the USCO’s stance, reinforcing the industry’s desire to protect human authorship.⁶ In derivative works, copyright applies only to the new, original aspects modified by human creativity.⁶ However, current legislation is insufficient to address these technological challenges, pointing to the need for reforms that protect human creators and deceased artists’ heirs.¹⁰

The widespread legal and ethical controversies surrounding AI-generated music create a significant risk profile for producers and platforms utilizing such content. This environment inherently increases the value proposition of sound libraries like Bloom KSHMR, which are explicitly based on human-recorded and ethically sourced material, offering a “safe harbor” for creators concerned about copyright infringement and reputational harm. The use of AI-generated music carries risks of copyright claims, demonetization, or legal action.⁵ There’s also the risk of reputational damage if associated with unethical AI practices.² Excite Audio’s emphasis on “meticulously recorded by handpicked musicians” for Bloom KSHMR ¹ directly addresses these market anxieties, positioning it as a low-risk, high-integrity option. This is not just about sound quality; it’s about legal and ethical peace of mind, which becomes a premium feature in the age of AI.

The music industry is rapidly moving towards a clearer distinction between “AI-assisted” content (human authorship with AI tools) and “AI-generated” content (created exclusively by machine), with vastly different legal and commercial implications. This will likely lead to a bifurcated market, where human-centric and ethically sourced sound libraries (like Bloom KSHMR) will command a premium value for their legal clarity and authenticity, while purely AI-generated content may be relegated to a lower-value, non-copyrightable, or high-risk tier. As the legal landscape solidifies, content with clear human authorship and ethical sourcing will become more valuable for commercial release, licensing, and long-term asset management. Products like Bloom KSHMR, by explicitly stating their human origin ¹, are inherently positioned in the “high-value, legally clear” segment. Conversely, purely AI-generated music, lacking copyright protection, may be limited to non-commercial or experimental use, or require new, complex licensing models to gain commercial viability. This creates a clear strategic advantage for companies that prioritize human creation and ethical data sourcing.

Authenticity, Copyright, and Legacy in the AI Era: A Critical Industry Dialogue

The value of human-recorded samples versus AI-generated content is a central point in the current music industry debate. Bloom KSHMR exemplifies a value proposition based on “meticulously recorded by handpicked musicians” ¹, offering “authenticity and expression” that are difficult for algorithms to replicate. This stands in stark contrast to descriptions of “AI schlock bot” ² and “confusingly similar outputs” ⁷ generated by AI, which often lack nuance, cultural depth, and human touch. There is a growing consumer and industry demand for genuine artistry and unique sonic identities in response to the proliferation of generic AI content.

The legal and ethical challenges of AI in music are multifaceted. The legal battles, such as GEMA’s lawsuits against Suno ⁷ and major label actions ⁷, coupled with the U.S. Copyright Office’s stance on AI copyrightability ⁵, and the issues of publicity rights for deceased artists ⁸, highlight the complexity of the situation. The industry has pushed for transparency in AI training data and fair compensation for creators.⁷ The ongoing need for legislative intervention to address the complexities of AI-generated creations and protect creators’ rights is evident.¹⁰

Bloom KSHMR positions itself as a model for ethical sound design, demonstrating how human creativity and cultural integrity can be preserved and monetized in the digital age. Its focus on culturally specific, authentically recorded sounds provides a distinct competitive advantage that AI struggles to convincingly and ethically replicate. Through this product, Excite Audio implicitly contributes to the broader industry dialogue, advocating for human artistry and intellectual property clarity.

The ethical and legal entanglement surrounding AI music creates a powerful marketing opportunity for products like Bloom KSHMR. Its explicitly human-centric and ethically sourced approach can be leveraged as a “trust signal” in a market increasingly wary of AI provenance, attracting producers who prioritize responsible content creation and legal safety. Research reveals examples of AI music causing legal disputes (copyright infringement, publicity rights violation) and ethical concerns (lack of consent, opaque training data). The USCO has clarified that purely AI-generated works are not copyrightable. Producers and content creators need legally clear and commercially viable assets, and the risks associated with AI-generated content (demonetization, lawsuits, reputational damage) are significant. Excite Audio’s emphasis on “meticulously recorded by handpicked musicians” for Bloom KSHMR ¹ directly addresses these market anxieties. It’s not just about sound quality; it’s about providing a legally safe and ethically sound product. This becomes an attractive selling point, especially for professional producers and media companies who cannot afford legal risks. This “trust” factor can differentiate Bloom KSHMR beyond its sonic features.

The ongoing industry dialogue about authenticity and intellectual property in the AI era will likely lead to a re-evaluation of “value” in music production assets. Unique, human-performed, and culturally specific sounds, like those in Bloom KSHMR, are likely to command a higher perceived and actual value compared to generic or easily replicable AI-generated sounds, fostering a “premium” segment for human-curated sound libraries. If AI can easily generate generic beats, melodies, or soundscapes, the market value of such “commoditized” sounds will decrease. Conversely, sounds that are difficult for AI to authentically replicate (due to cultural nuance, expressive performance, or ethical sourcing challenges) will become more valuable. Bloom KSHMR, with its focus on specific Indian instruments and human performance, falls into this “hard to replicate” category. This could lead to a two-tiered market, where generic AI-generated content is abundant and cheap (or even non-copyrightable), while unique, human-created, and ethically sourced content becomes a premium and highly sought-after commodity for professional and discerning creators.

Strategic Recommendations and Future Outlook for Music Technology

Based on the analysis of Bloom KSHMR and the broader music technology landscape, several strategic recommendations and future outlooks can be outlined for Excite Audio, music producers, and industry stakeholders.

Recommendations for Excite Audio

• Lean into Authenticity: Excite Audio should continue to emphasize the human and culturally authentic nature of Bloom KSHMR in its marketing. Positioning the instrument as an ethical and legally safe alternative to AI-generated content can be a powerful differentiator.
• Expand Cultural Offerings: The success of the KSHMR partnership suggests significant potential for exploring other culturally specific sound libraries. This can address global musical traditions that are still underexplored, capitalizing on the demand for unique and authentic sounds.
• Explore GPU Integration: Investigating how future iterations of Bloom or other Excite Audio products could leverage GPU processing to enhance realism, add more complex real-time manipulation, or expand the scale of sample libraries without compromising performance is crucial.⁴
• Educational Initiatives: Developing content or partnerships that educate producers about the ethical use of sound libraries and the distinction between human-created and AI-generated content can further solidify the Excite Audio brand as a responsible innovator.

Recommendations for Music Producers and Industry Stakeholders

• Prioritize Ethically Sourced Content: Producers should be encouraged to invest in sound libraries with clear provenance and human authorship to mitigate legal risks and support human creativity.
• Understand AI Copyright Limitations: Creators should be fully aware of the U.S. Copyright Office’s guidelines regarding AI-generated content and its non-copyrightability when created exclusively by machine.⁵
• Embrace Hybrid Approaches: It is suggested to explore AI as an assistive and inspirational tool (AI-assisted creativity) rather than full generation, ensuring human authorship and creative control.
• Advocate for Clearer Regulations: Industry bodies and artists should continue to push for clear legislative frameworks that protect intellectual property and artist rights in the era of generative AI.¹⁰

Future Outlook for Music Technology

The convergence of advanced processing capabilities (GPU) and market demand for authentic, human-recorded sounds points to a future where highly realistic, deeply expressive, and culturally specific virtual instruments become the next frontier. This allows for greater sonic fidelity and creative flexibility without compromising the “human touch.” GPU processing enables “high-throughput real-time processing” and is crucial for “high-fidelity real-time room modeling” and accessing “trillions of samples per second.”⁴ With Bloom KSHMR’s emphasis on “meticulously recorded” samples for authenticity ¹, GPU technology can enable sample-based instruments to be

more authentic and expressive, allowing for more detailed samples, complex performance modeling, and realistic spatialization, thereby amplifying the value of human-recorded source material.

The ongoing legal and ethical debates surrounding AI will likely force a clearer industry standard for “responsible AI” in music. This may lead to new business models that explicitly compensate artists for their data used in AI training or certify the human origin of sound libraries. Companies that proactively embrace ethical sourcing and transparency, as Excite Audio implicitly does with Bloom KSHMR, will gain a significant competitive advantage and build long-term trust. Lawsuits and industry backlash ³ highlight the severe consequences of unauthorized AI training and usage. The USCO’s stance on copyrightability ⁶ creates a legal incentive for human contribution. Models like that proposed by Soundverse ⁷ suggest a path for “fair compensation.” As legal and ethical awareness grows, stakeholders (labels, artists, producers) will demand greater transparency and accountability from music technology companies regarding their data sources and AI practices. This may manifest as new certifications, industry alliances, or even legislative mandates. Excite Audio’s current approach with Bloom KSHMR already aligns with this future, positioning them favorably to adapt to and even shape these emerging ethical and legal frameworks, thereby securing a more stable and respected market position.

In summary, the future of music technology will be characterized by hybrid creativity, where AI and human creativity increasingly intertwine, but with a clearer distinction and value attributed to human authorship and ethical data sourcing. Continued legal evolution is expected, with ongoing lawsuits and the development of more robust regulatory frameworks to govern AI in music, potentially leading to new licensing models or industry standards. We anticipate the emergence of highly specialized and hyper-realistic virtual instruments, driven by GPU advancements, offering unprecedented sonic detail and expressiveness. Furthermore, the implications of cloud-based GPU processing for mobile and collaborative music production can further democratize access to cutting-edge tools.⁴

AI in Music and the Challenges will continue to shape the industry’s future.

Conclusion

Excite Audio’s Bloom KSHMR represents a significant milestone in music technology, championing authenticity and human artistry in a rapidly evolving landscape. Its emphasis on meticulously recorded samples by human musicians, especially those exploring the rich tapestry of Indian music ¹, sharply contrasts with the emergence of artificial intelligence-generated content, which has raised serious intellectual property, ethical, and artist reputation concerns.²

The analysis reveals a dual impact of technological innovations: while AI presents complex challenges to intellectual property and authenticity, the advancement of GPU processing promises new possibilities for sonic complexity and realism in virtual instruments.⁴ Bloom KSHMR’s accessible pricing strategy, particularly the $5 Lite version, demonstrates a disruptive approach to market penetration, democratizing access to high-quality, culturally specific sounds.¹ This approach not only differentiates the product in a competitive virtual synthesizer market but also signals a potential shift towards more specialized and ethically sourced sound offerings.

Ultimately, the enduring value of human creativity and cultural expression remains central. The future of music technology lies in tools that enhance, rather than replace, the human element, ensuring that innovation occurs responsibly and ethically. Products like Bloom KSHMR, which prioritize authenticity and human authorship, are well-positioned to thrive in a market increasingly conscious of technology’s legal and ethical implications.

Find My Labels | findmylabels.com | SM Mastering – Mix & Master Services