Monash University researchers have joined a prestigious international group of researchers, cultural practitioners, public institutions and policymakers to secure a €5 million Horizon Europe Pillar 2 grant for Project CULTURAI. The four-year initiative is part of a global effort to shape a future in which AI strengthens rather than diminishes creative autonomy.
CULTURAI addresses the profound shift taking place across global cultural and creative industries as artificial intelligence is already transforming the work of artists, writers, and cultural organisations. Monash contributes a uniquely integrated research team whose expertise spans cultural governance, creative AI, and digital design.
Monash University Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Enterprise) and Senior Vice President, Professor Robyn Ward AM, said the successful grant outcome was a ringing endorsement of Australia’s imminent association with Horizon Europe.
“Research is an international endeavour and there is no bigger format than Horizon Europe. We look forward to building this collaboration and being at the heart of many more as Australia becomes an associate member of the Horizon Europe Framework,” Professor Ward said.
“Many congratulations to the Monash team for bringing together this consortia of partners to tackle the challenges AI brings to the creative industries.”
Professor Cecilia Hewlett, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Europe), said the grant represents a major strategic milestone for Monash’s collaboration with European partners through the Monash University European Research Foundation (MUERF).
“This collaboration reinforces our commitment to addressing global challenges alongside leading European institutions. By bridging the expertise of our own Monash researchers with European policy-making, we are ensuring that Monash remains at the forefront of global conversations regarding the ethical governance of emerging technologies,” Professor Hewlett said.
Monash’s team, led by Associate Professor Xin Gu, from the Faculty of Arts, holds the scientific lead on CULTURAI, setting the research agenda for an eleven-partner consortium across Europe. Associate Professor Gu said that how societies respond to generative AI is a cultural and political choice that must be guided by artistic freedom and social justice.
“The most widely used AI tools have often been developed without meaningful involvement from the creative communities whose work trained these systems. CULTURAI is about giving creators a say in how their rights and livelihoods are affected, ensuring AI strengthens rather than diminishes creative autonomy,” Associate Professor Gu said.
The project explores how AI can be used responsibly within public cultural institutions, such as libraries, archives and museums, and the wider audiovisual sector. Particular attention is given to ethics, governance, labour market impact, inclusivity and AI literacy. The project also runs Living Labs in which creators in music, film, gaming and digital storytelling co-design and test human-centred AI tools, and produce a global benchmarking analysis to inform European policymakers.
The Monash team is supported by world-class creative research infrastructure including SensiLab, Wonderlab, and the Digital Hub at the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music and Performance. The Monash/MUERF team includes: Associate Professor Xin Gu, Dr Matteo Dutto, Professor Jon McCormack, Professor Stacy Holman Jones, Professor Cat Hope and Dr Rowan Page.
CULTURAI is designed to tackle several structural hurdles, beginning with the critical lack of robust evidence regarding how AI impacts creative labour. Through large-scale surveys and comparative case studies, the project will generate the missing data needed to inform supportive regulation and protect the lived experiences of creative professionals. To move beyond generic commercial AI tools, the project will establish “Living Labs” where creators work directly with researchers to co-design culturally sensitive, affordable tools aligned with public-good mandates.
The project further seeks to bridge gaps in literacy and confidence by establishing a new International Competence Centre to provide the training and resources necessary for responsible AI adoption. To protect the visibility of human creativity, CULTURAI will also develop governance frameworks and human-centred design guidelines that ensure algorithms uphold the foundational values of diversity and pluralism rather than narrowing cultural participation.
Coordinated by the KB National Library of the Netherlands, the project is set to launch on 1 September 2026.
The project is carried out by an international consortium of universities, research institutes and cultural organizations from The Netherlands (KB National Library of the Netherlands, Delft University of Technology), Italy (Monash University European Research Foundation ETS and Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche), The United Kingdom (The University of Edinburgh), South Africa (University of the Witwatersrand Johannesburg), and Luxembourg (the University of Luxembourg). Other partners include UNESCO, Europeana Foundation (The Netherlands), IDEA Consult (Belgium) and Institute for Development and International Relations (Croatia).
Funding Statement and Disclaimer This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme.
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
