Record Labels Sue AI Startups for Copyright Violations in Music Industry

The lawsuit comes after 200 artists signed a letter urging the use of AI in the music industry to stop. AI startups are being sued by some of the world’s largest record labels, including Sony Music, Universal Music Group, and Warner Records, over alleged copyright violations. In what could be a landmark case setting a precedent for future AI copyright lawsuits, Suno and Udio, two AI startups with technology that generates music, are being sued in the US for £118,200 per ‘stolen’ work. The lawsuit claims that the startups steal existing music and generates work that is similar enough to breach copyright violations. Essentially, the claimants say the AI-generated music is too close to the source material. While AI firms have long said that their use of copyrighted works without a license is protected under the fair use doctrine, which many saying AI simply uses copyrighted material to learn from, the record labels are unconvinced. Instead, the lawsuit says that the two AI startups are essentially copying songs with little transformation. The claimants say that the AI firms have no reason to ingest the copyrighted material other than to distribute competing music. The lawsuit says that the AI startups have to play by the same rules as people, and accused the firms of wholesale theft of copyrighted recordings. Complaints went so far as to say the scheme threated the entire music ecosystem and threatens to displace the genuine human artistry that is at the heart of copyright protection. Artists appear to have similar concerns, as the lawsuit follows a letter signed by 200 artists urging to stop the use of AI in the music industry over similar concerns. Suno, based in Massachusetts, and Udio, based in New York, already have major followings and backings. Sumo has a partnership with Microsoft, with 10 million people already having used the app. Udio gained major popularity after it was used to generate the song BBL Drizzy which lampooned the feud between rappers Kendrick Lamar and Drake.