Suno Launches WMG-Licensed AI Music Models — SkimNews
Get the Culture newsletter
Daily culture — film, music, books, the trends and ideas worth your attention. Free.
- Suno released v6 AI music models trained on licensed data from Warner Music Group, user inputs, and prior learnings, calling it the first model built in direct partnership with the music industry
- Warner Music Group settled its 2024 copyright lawsuit against Suno and entered a licensing partnership providing recordings for training data, though it did not disclose how many songs were shared or whether artists opted in
- Universal Music Group and Sony Music continue their legal action against Suno and sought details of the WMG deal, while Suno says no further label settlements are confirmed despite calling the WMG deal a potential blueprint for future collaborations
- Suno is phasing out older models that were trained on publicly available web music without permission, acknowledging in court filings that those versions relied on broad fair use claims
- BMG signed a licensing agreement with Suno in August covering both recordings and publishing rights, while TuneCore's parent company Believe partnered with Suno in a deal allowing participating indie artists to join future AI initiatives
- Suno added audio watermarking and monthly download limits in September as concessions to industry concerns about AI flooding streaming platforms, months before launching the new models
Why it matters: Suno’s pivot to licensed training data shifts the AI music debate from infringement to coexistence, giving rights holders control over participation while setting a precedent other labels may follow. With UMG and Sony still litigating, the outcome could determine whether AI music scales through partnership or persists under legal threat.
Ask SkimNews
