Starting Tuesday, May 2, the Writers Guild of America (WGA), representing over 11,500 screenwriters, went on strike — primarily over contract negations concerning pay, employment opportunities, and pensions.

In recent days, however, a smaller section of the WGA proposal has been gaining attention, the call for regulation of artificial intelligence (AI) in the sector.

“Regulate use of artificial intelligence on MBA-covered projects: AI can’t write or rewrite literary material; can’t be used as source material; and MBA-covered material can’t be used to train AI,” proposed WGA. According to the same document, studios rejected this with a counteroffer of “annual meetings to discuss advancements in technology.”

Based on a variety of Twitter posts, writers see AI as a threat to their industry and other creative industries, if the technology is left unregulated.

I would also say very firmly that AI is a threat to singers and all musicians. Do we have a musicians union in the US? That would be very good. https://t.co/zpsUtktJGi

— Christina Dirkes ? – TAEMIN’S DAY! (@christinadirkes) May 6, 2023

“Be afraid, kids. Your treasured shows could be slaughtered because Wordsmiths are yet again not respected,” BAFTA judge Del Walker in a recent tweet. He explained that similar strikes in 2007 ruined shows like Heroes, Prison Break, and Desperate Housewives.

As shared by Philip Lewis, the senior editor for HuffPost, a variety of talk shows are already slated to be shut down as a result of the strike, including The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

“AI is terrifying,” said Danny Strong, the creator of Dopesick and Empire, as first shared by Fortune — however, Strong added that he’s not terrified of systems like OpenAI’s ChatGPT taking writers’ jobs, because “chat is a terrible writer. But who knows? That could change.”

In a response to the call for regulations of AI by WGA, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which serves as labor representatives for Hollywood’s studios, stated that “AI raises hard, important creative and legal questions for everyone. For example, writers want to be able to use this technology as part of their creative process, without changing how credits are determined, which is complicated given AI material can’t be copyrighted.”

AMPTP added that “it’s something that requires a lot more discussion, which we’ve committed to doing,” however, it ended its comments on AI by stating that under the current WGA Agreement, only materials produced by individuals are eligible for writing credit but that material generated using AI would be ineligible — meaning writers, if regulations are to come, may not be permitted to use the tech.

In other news, The White House releases an AI Bill of Rights blueprint.