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Sony Music and Universal Music Group Sue Suno Over New AI Model
Confirmed
In Short: The two largest music labels argue Suno's latest AI model still infringes on their copyrighted works.
Sony Music and Universal Music Group filed a lawsuit on Friday (Sept. 18) in Boston federal court against Suno, an AI music-generation company, alleging that its new model, v6, still infringes on their copyrighted works.
The labels argue that Suno’s new model, despite claims of being a legal advancement, is still derived from illegal practices. They contend that v6 was trained on outputs and user interactions from earlier models, a practice they describe as 'synthetic data,' which they say does not resolve the original infringement issues.
UMG and Sony assert that Suno’s actions threaten the entire music ecosystem and the livelihoods of human artists. They argue that Suno’s model degrades artists' rights to control their works and align future uses with their aesthetic and personal values.
Suno has long maintained that its use of millions of works to train AI models falls under the fair use exemption of copyright law. The company argues that since no market exists for AI training data, its practices are legal.
In their complaint, the labels describe Suno’s new model as 'the fruit of the same poisoned tree,' emphasizing that the model’s training methods have not changed fundamentally. They argue that Suno’s actions continue to trample on the rights of human artists and threaten the music industry's integrity.
What's confirmed
- Sony Music and Universal Music Group filed a lawsuit on Friday (Sept. 18) in Boston federal court against Suno, an AI music-generation company, alleging that its new model, v6, still infringes on their copyrighted works.
- The labels argue that Suno’s new model, despite claims of being a legal advancement, is still derived from illegal practices. They contend that v6 was trained on outputs and user interactions from earlier models, a practice they describe as 'synthetic data,' which they say does not resolve the original infringement issues.
- UMG and Sony assert that Suno’s actions threaten the entire music ecosystem and the livelihoods of human artists. They argue that Suno’s model degrades artists' rights to control their works and align future uses with their aesthetic and personal values.
- Suno has long maintained that its use of millions of works to train AI models falls under the fair use exemption of copyright law. The company argues that since no market exists for AI training data, its practices are legal.
- In their complaint, the labels describe Suno’s new model as 'the fruit of the same poisoned tree,' emphasizing that the model’s training methods have not changed fundamentally. They argue that Suno’s actions continue to trample on the rights of human artists and threaten the music industry's integrity.
What's still developing
- They added more than 61,000 new songs to the fight and argued Suno was still the same illegal product even after the release of its new model.
- “Suno’s wholesale theft … threatens the entire music ecosystem and the numerous people it employs,” the two majors write.
- Both cases turn on the question of AI training — using millions of existing works to “train” models how to create new ones.
- In the new case, UMG and Sony say that Suno’s new model, dubbed v6, is hardly the fully-legal model it’s been touted as.