Culture 4 min read By Morgan Griffin
Dr. Dre Says AI Is a New Tool for Creativity, Not a Threat
Dr. Dre says AI is a new tool for creativity, comparing it to the drum machine and synthesizer, and argues that only people who have trouble creating see it as a threat.
Dr. Dre, the legendary hip-hop producer and co-founder of Beats Electronics, has dismissed fears that artificial intelligence poses a threat to music, describing the technology as a new tool for creativity. In a recent interview with the New York Times, Dre said he is embracing AI and compared resistance to it with the opposition that initially greeted drum machines and synthesizers.
“I had a discussion with a few people a few days ago,” Dre said. “They were against AI and I’m like, ‘OK, you sound like the person that would have been against the drum machine when it came out’. Or synthesizers, right? It’s a new tool for creativity. Some people are afraid of learning new things.” He added, “I’m embracing it. I can’t wait to see what’s going to happen with this.”
The producer, who founded the Aftermath record label and serves as CEO of Apple’s Beats, revealed that he is already using AI in his own production work. He explained that he employs it “as a tool to see what it would do with what I just did.” When asked whether the technology threatens musicians, Dre said, “I think the only people that see it as a threat are the people who have trouble creating.”
Dre’s longtime business partner Jimmy Iovine, who co-founded Beats Electronics with him, echoed that enthusiasm. “I’m very pro-AI in music creation,” Iovine said. “I don’t see the downside at all. There will be some crappy music. There’s crappy music now. In the studio, when gifted people have AI, they’re going to make better records.”
Dre and Iovine have worked together since the 1990s and sold Beats to Apple for $3 billion in 2014. Iovine has previously predicted that AI would become “massive” in songwriting. Speaking in 2023, he said the technology could help songwriters experiment when they are struggling for ideas, although he also warned that formulaic approaches might produce popularity but not enduring greatness.
The use of AI in music remains a divisive topic across the industry. Earlier this month, Daft Punk’s Thomas Bangalter described AI as “a way to bypass the creative process,” arguing that entering prompts into a system runs counter to the deeper and more instinctive process involved in making art. Other artists, including Mac DeMarco, SZA, and Lorde, have been critical of AI’s growing influence, with Jack Antonoff slamming musicians who use it as “godless whores.”
Some artists have embraced the technology. Tyga confirmed that he used AI in the making of his album “$tarface” and compared the backlash to the initial reaction to Auto-Tune. A recent study claimed that AI could be detected in approximately 40 percent of music released during July 2026, despite nearly a third of the artists flagged by detection software denying having used the technology.
Streaming platforms are also responding. Spotify recently announced an AI-labelling system, while Apple Music is set to introduce labels for AI-generated material later this year. Bandcamp, meanwhile, has outright banned music made using AI from its platform.
Dre’s recent projects include producing Snoop Dogg’s 2024 album “Missionary,” a spiritual sequel to his classic 1993 debut “Doggystyle.” The producer has also said he does not listen to much modern hip-hop and dislikes the majority of what he has heard.
