Itโs not long until Music Ally Connectour two-day international music-industry conference. Taking placeโ on 22-23 January 2026 at The โBrewery in london,โข it will gather speakers from around the world.
AI, innovation, publishing, marketing, music and gaming, and growth in India,โ Asia and Africa are among the topics on theโข agenda.As part of our preparations, weโve been picking the brains of speakers on current trends, as well as their advice โคfor emerging artists.
Next in line is Helena Kosinski,a leadingโข expert in global music data and audience insight,formerly VP,global at Luminate and currently an advisory board member of โMusic technology UK.
Like manny other people in the industry, AI is at the forefrontโค of her thoughts as 2025 draws to a close. Sheโฃ cites โthe โmaturation of AI from โคa threat narrative to the reality of technological developmentโโ as the trend that she has been most excited about in 2025.
โThe conversation has evolved from โhow doโฃ we stop GenAI?โ to โhow โฃdo we build the licensing frameworks that make GenAI work?โ,โ says Kosinski. โThe shift is a sign of the industryโs quicker engagement โwith the inevitable. The question is no longer โAI or not?โ but โAI for whom, and on what terms?’โ
Looking ahead to the challenges sheโd like to be tackled in 2026,โ Kosinski seesโค โseveral problems holding the industry backโ including the perennial โคbugbear of accurate data.
โA foundational issue is data infrastructure: conflicting data on โคrights ownership, persistently inaccurate metadata, and now โAI โฃmodels trained without clarity โaboutโข which copyrighted โขworks are included,โ she says.
โYou canโt compensate creators fairly, clear licenses efficiently, or build trustworthy Gen AI platforms without also focusing on this. Companies areโข building solutions to thes problems โ more open rights databases, metadata verification, clear AI โฃattribution systems,โ continues Kosinski.
โWhat we need in 2026 is a focus on the investment in the data and tech infrastructure that makes everything else possible,โ alongside a focus on attribution, transparent licensing, and building the metadata infrastructure that could actuallyโฃ compensate creators fairly.โ
Her work with MTUK has included co-authoring its โSound Investments: the Case for UK Musicโข Techโ report, which was publishedโข earlier this year. Among โitsโ findingsโ was a critical funding gap for startups.
โWhile seed capitalโ is accessible,โ only 14 companies progressed to Series A between 2020-2024 despite 54 raising seed rounds. โขWithout patient, music-literate growth capitalโ and export โฃsupport, the problem โis worsening,โ says Kosinski.
โOnly 4.6% of companies โขfounded in 2023-2024 received funding, down dramatically from the 20% average for companies founded inโ the eight years prior. The solutions exist โ we just โขneed the investment infrastructure โขto match theโ ambition โคof the companies building the future of โฃmusic rights and data.โ
A final question weโre asking all the speakers in this โขConnect Chats series focuses on what adviceโค they haveโฃ for emerging artists tryingโข to navigate the industry in 2026.
โUnderstand your data, โand own whatever you can of your tech stack,โ is โคKosinskiโs message โto these musicians.
โThe artists whoโฃ thrive in 2026 wonโt just make โฃgreat music โ theyโll understand which platforms actually convertโ fans, what their true engagement metrics โare, and how to useโ tools that put them in direct relationship with their audience rather then just renting access through intermediaries,โ she adds.
โTheโฃ good โnews is that the music techโข ecosystem is building for artists, not just labels. My advice: be strategic about which partners you need, stay curiousโค about the technology enabling your career, and remember that the โขgoalโ isnโt to be independentโ of everyone โ itโs to be intentional about who youโre dependent on.โ
Helena Kosinski will be chairing the music Ally Connect โWhat Does Supremium Really Mean?โ panel on 23 January. Browse the full agenda and get your tickets โhere. Meanwhile, you can browse our other Connect Chats interviews here.