Sony Music Entertainment has launched a new lawsuit against AI music generator Udio, alleging that it infringed the copyright of more than 30,000 songs. The case, filed in a New York court, encompasses works by numerous renowned artists, from Elvis Presley to Beyoncé and Harry Styles. Sony states that this list represents only a small portion of the songs allegedly infringed by Udio.
Previously, in 2024, Sony, along with Universal Music Group and Warner Records, filed a lawsuit against Udio and Suno. Sony claimed that after gaining access to Udio's training data, it identified additional songs using a "voiceprint" technique. However, a judge previously rejected Sony's request to expand the scope of that lawsuit to include over 30,000 songs, limiting it to 333 works.
In response to that rejection, Sony announced it has filed a new lawsuit specifically targeting the more than 30,000 songs. It is alleged that Udio trained its AI models using "a large number of different types of audio recordings" obtained from platforms such as YouTube. Meanwhile, Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group have reached settlements with Udio, aligning with the industry trend of embracing AI through partnerships.
Sony seeks to prevent Udio from further infringing its works and is demanding damages of up to $150,000 for each infringed song. This lawsuit once again highlights the complex relationship between the use of AI in music creation and the protection of copyright.