MPA’s Rivkin and Indian Officials Call for Creator-First AI Policy in Delhi

The Global Impact Summit in Delhi has emerged as a critical forum for the intersection of artificial intelligence and the creative industries, signaling a shift in how global media powers intend to regulate generative technologies. Charles Rivkin, Chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association (MPA), used the platform to advocate for a creator-centered AI policy that prioritizes human ingenuity over automated output. This approach emphasizes that while AI is a transformative tool for storytelling, its deployment must be anchored in strong copyright protections and the preservation of the value chain that sustains professional creators. By framing AI as a tool for creative excellence rather than a replacement for it, the MPA is attempting to set the terms of engagement for the next decade of media production.

India's role in this conversation is pivotal and represents a strategic alliance for the MPA. With one of the world's largest and most prolific film and media sectors, the Indian government’s stance on AI will set a significant precedent for other emerging digital economies. Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw’s comments regarding the complementing impact of AI suggest a regulatory environment that favors augmentation over replacement. This aligns with India's broader digital strategy of fostering innovation while protecting its massive talent pool. The collaboration between the MPA and Indian ministries indicates a unified front between Hollywood and Bollywood—the world's two largest film industries—against the unregulated use of copyrighted material by AI developers.

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Charles Rivkin, Chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association (MPA), used the platform to advocate for a creator-centered AI policy that prioritizes human ingenuity over automated output.

For the MPA and its member studios, including giants like Disney, Netflix, and Warner Bros. Discovery, the stakes are exceptionally high. The training of Large Language Models (LLMs) and generative video tools often relies on vast datasets of existing copyrighted material. Rivkin’s insistence on strong copyright frameworks is a direct signal to tech companies that the creative industry will not concede its intellectual property rights without a fight. This sets the stage for future legislative battles over fair use versus licensed use in AI training datasets. The MPA is essentially arguing that the creative economy’s health depends on a closed-loop system where creators are compensated for the data that makes AI models functional in the first place.

This Delhi summit mirrors similar high-level discussions in Hollywood and Brussels, yet the focus here on cultural exports highlights a unique geopolitical angle. For nations like India, the creative economy is a vital tool of soft power and economic growth. If AI-generated content begins to homogenize global culture or bypass local creators, it threatens not just jobs but national cultural identity. Minister Vaishnaw’s assertion that human creativity is the most important asset of civilization underscores a philosophical resistance to the idea of AI as an autonomous creator. This sentiment is likely to manifest in future Indian policy that requires transparency in AI training and perhaps even mandatory revenue-sharing models for AI-generated content that mimics specific styles or artists.

Moving forward, the industry should expect more formal partnerships between the MPA and regional bodies like the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) to lobby for specific AI guardrails. The Rewarding Our Creative Future initiative suggests a shift toward technical solutions, such as certification or watermarking systems that verify human-led creative processes. For investors and tech developers, the message from Delhi is clear: the path to AI integration in the creative sector must be paved with licensing agreements and respect for established intellectual property law. The era of frictionless data scraping for creative AI may be coming to a close as major creative hubs align their policy goals.