Big Content is taking on AI – but it’s a far cry from the David versus Goliath tale you’d be led to believe Alexander Avila

The largest music company in the world is now in the AI ​​business. Last year, Universal Music Group (UMG), along with labels including Warner Records and Sony Music Entertainment, sued two AI music startups for allegedly using their recordings to train lyrics-to-music models without permission.

But last month, UMG announced a deal with one of the defendants, Udio, to create an AI music platform. In their joint press release, they assured that the label would be committed to “doing the right thing for (UMG’s) artists.” However, an advocacy group, the Music Artists Coalition, responded by saying, “We’ve seen this before – everyone talks about ‘partnership,’ but artists are left behind with leftovers.”

The lawsuit is one of dozens in US courts. As artists, publishers and studios argue that using their material in AI training constitutes copyright infringement, judges are struggling to balance copyright with a technology that undermines the very concept of…