Warner Music Group settles lawsuit with AI music firm and launches joint venture
Warner Music Group (WMG) will launch an artificial intelligence (AI) music venture with tech start-up Suno, a year after suing the firm in a groundbreaking lawsuit.
As part of the settlement agreement reached between the two companies, Warner will allow users to create AI-generated music on Suno using the voices, names and images of artists participating in the program.
The record label, which represents artists such as Dua Lipa, Coldplay and Ed Sheeran, was among many music giants such as Sony Music to sue Suno and a similar platform called Udio.
AI-generated content has become controversial, with many artists expressing concerns that it could undermine human songwriters.
It was stated that starting next year, Suno will introduce new, advanced and licensed models of its generative artificial intelligence music platform, which allows users to create music based on simple descriptions. Warner’s statement.
The Massachusetts-based firm has nearly 100 million users and launched two years ago.
Warner said Suno’s 2026 model will replace the current version and require users to pay for audio downloads. Songs in the service’s free tier can still be played and shared.
Warner said the “first-of-its-kind” partnership will open “new frontiers” in music creation while ensuring the creative community is rewarded.
“Artists and songwriters will have full control over whether and how their names, images, likenesses, sounds and compositions will be used in new AI-generated music,” Warner said. It was not stated which artists participated in the program.
“The agreement also resolves previous litigation between the companies,” he added.
Suno, along with another AI company that offers a similar platform called Udio, was sued by music giants Warner, Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group. case Announced by the Recording Industry Association of America in 2024The BBC has contacted him for comment.
He accused record labels Udio and Suno of profiting from copying existing songs, claiming the platforms produced tracks that were indistinguishable from the work of real artists.
Companies have described the use of AI as “wholesale theft” and part of a trend that threatens the music ecosystem.
The legal battle comes just months after nearly 200 artists, including Billie Eilish and Nicki Minaj, signed a letter calling for a halt to the “predatory” use of artificial intelligence in the music industry.
Supporters of generative AI studies have compared computers’ machine learning to the way humans learn by reading, hearing and seeing previous studies.
