Contrasting Approaches to AI in Music

Suno under fire again

A coalition of prominent artist advocates has issued a forceful open letter urging the music community to reject the AI music generator Suno, accusing the company of operating as a “brazen smash and grab” platform built on unauthorized training of human artists’ copyrighted work. The letter, published on February 23 and signed by leaders from the Music Artist Coalition, the European Composer and Songwriter Alliance, the Artist Rights Institute, and several well‑known artists, argues that Suno’s model exploits creators and threatens the integrity of the music ecosystem. Their warning comes as Suno faces multiple copyright lawsuits from major labels and rights organizations, even as rival Udio has begun settling cases and signing licensing deals with Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group. Suno, by contrast, remains embroiled in litigation with UMG, Sony Music Entertainment, and European rights societies including Koda and GEMA.

Suno sits within a broader surge of AI‑generated music flooding streaming platforms. Data from Deezer shows roughly 60,000 AI‑generated tracks uploaded daily, with synthetic content representing nearly 39% of all new music delivered to the service. Deezer also reported that up to 85% of streams on AI‑generated tracks were fraudulent in 2025, compared to 8% fraud across its full catalog. The signatories argue that this influx of “AI slop” dilutes royalty pools and undermines legitimate artists whose work is used—without permission—to train generative models. They contend that this form of AI represents a fundamentally different, more extractive threat than past technological shifts in music.

Google acquires musician-friendly AI company

In contrast, Google made a move that was generally lauded within the music community. Google’s acquisition of ProducerAI brings one of the most musician‑focused AI music platforms directly into Google Labs and DeepMind, marking a strategic move to deepen Google’s presence in generative music technology. ProducerAI — originally launched as the viral open‑source project Riffusion — now runs on Google’s newest models, including a preview of Lyria 3 for music generation, Gemini for conversational interaction, Nano Banana for album art, and Veo for AI‑powered music videos, with all outputs watermarked via SynthID for traceability. Google emphasizes that ProducerAI is built for conversational, iterative creation, not one‑shot prompts, positioning it as a collaborative tool that mirrors how musicians actually work. The entire ProducerAI team has joined Google, and artists like Wyclef Jean have already been experimenting with the platform through Google’s Music AI Sandbox.

ProducerAI stands out as a smaller but less legally encumbered platform than Suno, and Google stresses that Lyria 3 is trained only on music it has the rights to use through YouTube and partner agreements. The acquisition reflects Google’s broader push to position itself as a responsible, artist‑aligned leader in AI music. The company has been vocal about developing its models “in collaboration with the music community” and mindful of copyright and partner agreements. ProducerAI’s roadmap includes features like Spaces, which allow artists to create new instruments and effects using natural language, reinforcing Google’s focus on creative control and professional‑grade tools. As the industry debates the ethics and economics of AI‑generated music, Google is betting that transparency, licensing compliance, and artist‑centric design will differentiate its approach in a market increasingly defined by both innovation and legal risk.

Yosick Law supports the rights of musicians to control their art

Here are at Yosick Law we are committed to supporting music and the rights of musicians. If you have questions about the role of AI in the music industry or how to protect your rights, please contact us.