Queen's Brian May Outraged by AI's Treatment of Freddie Mercury Image

Queen guitarist Brian May has voiced strong opposition to artificial intelligence, particularly after a disappointing encounter with AI-generated imagery of the band's late frontman, Freddie Mercury. May expressed his outrage on social media, criticizing the quality of an image produced by Meta AI when tasked with recreating the cover of Queen's 1980 album, "The Game."

“

This is what it gave me! Good job, eh? So this is the kind of intelligence that will soon rule the world??! Well, great. Maybe it's time to realize that we REALLY DON'T NEED ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE!!!

"This is what it gave me! Good job, eh? So this is the kind of intelligence that will soon rule the world??! Well, great. Maybe it's time to realize that we REALLY DON'T NEED ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE!!!" May exclaimed, preserving the original punctuation in his social media post. He found the AI's output "ridiculous" and questioned the necessity of such technology.

Beyond the specific artistic failure, May extended his criticism to the broader implications of AI development. He warned that the "price we will soon have to pay for this 'inevitable' development is simply too high." His concerns also encompass the significant environmental impact of the vast infrastructure required to power AI systems, specifically targeting the construction of large data centers in the UK.

“

But now I'm quite serious. I believe the price we will soon have to pay for this 'inevitable' development is simply too high.

May directly appealed to UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham, urging him to halt investments in these data centers. "Dear Andy – you have to stop this now. Before it is too late," he implored. The article notes that the artistic community is divided on AI, with some, like singer Linda Perry, advocating for its acceptance as a new tool.

“

Dear Andy – you have to stop this now. Before it is too late.