In May, Grimes launched Elf.Tech, a platform that allows fans to use AI technology to replicate her voice. She shared “Cold Touch,” a collaboration with Kito made with Elf.Tech. After, she released “Welcome To The Opera,” a song she first debuted at Electric Daisy Carnival in 2022.
The eccentric pop star confronts her interest in technology on her new clubby track “I Wanna Be Software”: “I wanna be software / Upload my mind / Take all my data / What will you find?” she sings, her vocals warped and alien-like. “I wanna be software / Battery heart / Infinite options / State of the art.”
However, despite her advocation and excitement for the intersection of AI and music, it was reported that Grimes was a signee on a short statement from the Center For AI Safety (CAIS) that warned of AI posing an extinction threat to humanity. “Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war,” the brief statement read. CAIS also noted in a press release that they want to “put guardrails in place and set up institutions so that AI risks don’t catch us off guard.”
Listen to “I Wanna Be Software” above.