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Building Trust for Artists: Our Journey and Vision

ArtyShield.ai was born out of a passion for preserving artistic integrity in a rapidly evolving digital landscape. Recognizing the threats posed by unauthorized AI exploitation, we set out to create a solution that empowers artists and safeguards their work. Our journey is fueled by a commitment to innovation and a deep respect for creativity.

AI and technology background

Team

Our Team

Meet the passionate individuals behind ArtyShield.ai.

Jian (Jack) Liu
Professor @ UGA Stanford World's Top 2% Most Cited Scientists
Pioneer in Music Protection Expert in AI Security and Privacy
Jian (Jack) Liu, Ph.D.
CEO, Founder

Jian Liu is an Associate Professor at the University of Georgia and director of the MoSIS Lab. He specializes in trustworthy AI, security, and audio technologies, and has developed creator-protection tools that guard music from unauthorized AI use. At ArtyShield, Jian leads company vision and strategy, turns cutting-edge research into creator-friendly products, and drives partnerships, fundraising, and team growth.

Syed Irfan Ali Meerza
Incoming Professor @ VCU Pioneer in Data/Music Protection
Expert in AI Security and Privacy Expert in Music AI
Syed Irfan Ali Meerza
CTO

Syed Irfan Ali Meerza (Irfan) brings deep expertise in machine learning, music generation, and trustworthy AI. He leads the design of ArtyShield's core protection stack and has been a key developer behind MusicShield and the HarmonyCloak research lineage. Irfan's focus is turning cutting-edge research into reliable, creator-friendly products that safeguard artists' work at scale.

Pete Kirtley
Songwriter & Record Producer 200+ Records Produced Worldwide
15M+ Sales & 100M+ Streams Ivor Novello Award Winner
Pete Kirtley
Head of Creative

Pete Kirtley is an award-winning songwriter, producer, and music entrepreneur with 25+ years across every major industry shift - from CDs to streaming to AI. He leads creator-centric innovation at the intersection of music, gaming, and AI, developing new revenue models and safeguarding artists’ rights and ownership against AI exploitation.

Benn Jordan
Composer Behind The Flashbulb Musician
Researcher YouTube Educator (1.1M+ Followers)
Benn Jordan
Head of Strategy & Outreach

Benn Jordan is the composer behind The Flashbulb, blending IDM, ambient, and modern classical music for more than two decades. His film work and popular YouTube channel keep him close to the creator community, and he now leads strategy and outreach at ArtyShield to make sure our tools truly serve artists.

Yi Chen Liu
Trustworthy AI Research
AI Product Development
Yi Chen Liu
Research Scientist

Yi Chen Liu is a Ph.D. student at the University of Georgia, working under Dr. Jian Liu in trustworthy AI. She earned her B.S. from the University of Toronto and her M.S. from Columbia University. She has played an important role in supporting ArtyShield's AI product development, contributing to the technical foundation behind the company's innovative solutions for trustworthy creative media.

Advisors

Our Advisors

David Barbe
Music Industry Executive Veteran Producer/Performer
Mentor to Artists & Entrepreneurs
David Barbe
Music Business Advisor

David Barbe is a renowned music executive, producer, and educator with decades of experience shaping the music industry. As Director of the Music Business Program at the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business, he has guided countless artists and entrepreneurs while continuing his work as a producer and performer. With a career spanning collaborations with top acts and leadership in both creative and business arenas, David brings invaluable expertise in artist development, music management, and innovative industry practices to ArtyShield.

Bob Vanderhoff
40+ Years Leadership Growth & Strategy Expert
Executive-in-Residence, UTRF
Bob Vanderhoff
Business Advisor

Bob Vanderhoff is an executive advisor, fractional CEO, and business strategist with over 40 years of leadership experience. He is Founder and CEO of 35 Consulting Company (also known as 35 Advisory Group). He currently serves as an Executive in Residence for the University of Tennessee Research Foundation, a leadership coach in the University of Tennessee Executive MBA program, a board member for Wilson Lumber in Huntsville, AL, and a consultant helping companies overcome strategic, leadership, and execution challenges.

Legal Advisor
Legal Advisor
Coming Soon

A legal expert specializing in intellectual property and AI ethics who will help navigate the complex legal landscape of AI and creative rights.

We're hiring!

Join our innovative team and make an impact.

Innovation

Our Journey: Key Milestones Achieved

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Speech AI Security Roots (2018)

Our founders have been working on adversarial machine learning for speech AI models in 2018, exploring vulnabilities of AI models and building defensive tooling that now powers ArtyShield’s ability to protect creative IP against misuse.

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Music Protection Research (2024)

Building on our years of adversarial ML work, we developed HarmonyCloak in 2024, aiming to protect music from unauthorized AI exploitation.

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MusicShield (Late 2024)

Developed more scalable and robust versions of our framework (MusicShield) against unauthorized AI exploitation, enhancing protection capabilities and expanding our technological foundation.

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Media Recognition (2024-2025)

Received extensive media coverage and recognition from industry leaders for our innovative approach to AI copyright protection and framework development.

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ArtyShield Founded (August 2025)

We founded ArtyShield.ai to commercialize our research and bring advanced AI protection solutions to artists worldwide.