The Verge Interviews RIAA Chief on Copyright and the AI Era

According to a report from 2026-11-09, the author sat down with Mitch Glazier, CEO and chairman of the RIAA, to discuss where music copyright stands and how the industry has evolved. Glazier recalled how the Napster era reshaped the record labels’ public image, and how a college-era moment with the RIAA later steered the editor toward a career in copyright law. Their conversation traced how enforcement styles, artist compensation, and public attitudes toward intellectual property have shifted in the time since peer-to-peer file sharing dominated the news.

Beyond history, the two explored what copyright should mean as AI becomes a routine part of music creation and distribution. The discussion touched on questions around training data, consent, royalties, and how labels and AI companies may end up writing the rules of the road in the coming years. While no single legislative fix emerged from the exchange, the interview framed the copyright fight as less about stopping technology and more about building norms that creators, platforms, and audiences can all live with as the industry keeps changing.