Prasoon Joshi Raises AI Concerns as Spotify Reports 29% Rise in Indian Artist Royalties
Prasar Bharati chairman Prasoon Joshi took the stage at a Spotify‑hosted event on Tuesday, warning that the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence could erode India’s cultural heritage, from music to endangered languages. Appointed in May 2026, Joshi said AI is not “artificial” but a mirror of human data and experience. He urged a partnership model where humans and AI work side‑by‑side without hierarchy and called for targeted efforts to safeguard cultural moments that are at risk.
His remarks arrived alongside the launch of Spotify’s annual Loud & Clear report, presented by skill‑development minister Jayant Chaudhary. The report shows that royalties paid to Indian artists on the platform grew 29 percent in 2025. The increase was driven by a broad range of regional languages: Telugu royalties surged more than 120 percent year‑on‑year, Marathi up nearly 50 percent, and Bengali close to 40 percent.
The report also highlighted the meteoric rise of Haryanvi music. From February 2023 to February 2026, Haryanvi streams on Spotify grew almost seven‑fold, making it one of the fastest‑growing language categories on the service. Nearly one hundred Haryanvi acts now rank among Spotify India’s top 5,000 artists.
Chaudhary noted that as technology reshapes creative industries, there is a need to strengthen skills, digital capabilities and enterprise opportunities for young creators. He added that the number of artists earning over ₹1 crore annually increased 21 percent year‑on‑year, and that those earning over ₹5 crore more than doubled since 2023.
The Loud & Clear report also revealed that 90 percent of tracks on Spotify India’s Daily Top 50 were by Indian artists. Independent Indian pop—often called I‑Pop—accounted for half of the platform’s 2025 year‑end top ten in India. Artists such as Aditya Rikhari, Kushagra, Anuv Jain, Faheem Abdullah and Jasleen Royal appeared alongside the country’s biggest film soundtracks.
Joshi’s concerns about AI and cultural preservation were echoed by actor‑turned‑politician Khushboo Sundar, who said that songs that touch people deeply cannot be created by AI and must come from human experience.
Spotify’s data underscores the economic power of India’s creative economy. With a global reach of over 777 million monthly active users as of March 2026, the platform provides a digital marketplace that enables artists from diverse linguistic backgrounds to reach audiences and build sustainable livelihoods.
The juxtaposition of Joshi’s cautionary stance with Spotify’s growth figures illustrates a key tension in the industry: while technology expands opportunities for creators, it also raises questions about how cultural heritage is maintained and monetised. The Indian government’s focus on skill development and digital infrastructure, highlighted by Chaudhary, suggests a policy direction that seeks to balance innovation with cultural stewardship.
At the event, no specific policy proposals were announced, but the discussion highlighted the need for public‑private partnerships to navigate the future of creativity in an AI‑driven world.
The Loud & Clear report will be used by industry stakeholders to benchmark artist performance and by policymakers to assess the impact of digital platforms on the creative economy. As Spotify continues to report on royalty trends, the data will inform future negotiations between artists, labels and streaming services.
In summary, Prasoon Joshi’s remarks and Spotify’s 2025 royalty data together paint a picture of an Indian music industry that is rapidly expanding through digital channels while facing new challenges in preserving its rich cultural heritage.
