[Air-L] Final reminder - PhD studentship (2026-), 'Artificial Inequality: AI and its Impact on the UK Creative Industries', University of Manchester

[Sam Hind]

Apologies for x-posting

*Deadline this Monday*

Dear Air-L list members

Dave O'Brien, myself, and Riza Batista-Navarro have a PhD studentship opportunity on 'Artifical Inequality: AI and its Impact on the UK Creative Industries' at the University of Manchester, UK.

Don't hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions, sam.hind at manchester.ac.uk.

About the Project
Inequality in cultural and creative industries (CCIs) is a very well-established issue (e.g. Brook et al 2025). Poor working conditions, uncertain and precarious careers, discrimination and lack of diversity, alongside challenges to funding and business models are all key areas in recent research. These structural issues sit alongside work designed to understand the experiences of creative workers as they navigate these social, economic and cultural conditions.
Artificial Intelligence (AI), widely defined, is another new challenge for CCIs. Debates over AI and CCIs, whether as a positive influence on creativity and productivity or questions over IP ownership, threats to sustainable careers, and other negative impacts, are increasingly prominent in the research literature (e.g. Lee 2024, Lee et al 2024). However, AI’s impact on the structural inequalities shaping CCIs is still yet to be settled. Whilst advocates contend that AI will open up new creative opportunities for those within and beyond CCIs, critics argue that AI will only further disrupt UK creative industries operating in a difficult national and global economic climate.. Alongside this, work examining workers’ experiences is also less well-established, despite the speed at which creative AI platforms and features (e.g. Midjourney, Adobe Firefly, Suno) have become part of the wider creative landscape since the launch of ChatGPT in 2022.
The potential for research on issues of AI, CCIs and inequality are especially urgent in the UK. The UK’s industrial strategy has highlighted creative industries as one of eight priority sectors. It has also stressed the positive, transformative, impact of AI on the sector. At the same time, inequalities are also an important part of policy for CCIs, suggesting a tension that is underdeveloped in policy thinking, as well as in the literature.

Key features of this studentship

  *   Receive a fully funded studentship covering tuition fees and an annual stipend at the UKRI rate (previously 2025/26 £20,780 per year) for 3.5 years.
  *   Research Training and Support Grant (RTSG): £3,000 total over 3.5 years.
  *   CreativeAI studentship methods training and cohort-building activities.

Deadline for applications is March 30, 2026.

For more details, and how to apply: https://www.findaphd.com/phds/project/artificial-inequality-ai-and-its-impact-on-the-uk-creative-industries-creativeai-studentship/?p194708

The project is part of the recently-launched CreativeAI studentships here at Manchester, hosted in the Centre for Digital Humanities, Cultures and Media: https://www.humanities.manchester.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-research/funding/list-of-awards/creativeaistudentships/

Regards
Sam


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Sam Hind
Lecturer in Digital Media and Culture
University of Manchester, UK
Centre for Digital Humanities, Cultures and Media
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