Sony Sues Udio AI Music Generator for 30,000 Songs

Sony Music Entertainment has filed a new lawsuit in New York federal court against AI music generator Udio, alleging unauthorized copying of over 30,000 songs for training its models. The songs include works by Elvis Presley, Beyoncé, and Harry Styles. Sony identified the infringing songs using audio fingerprinting after obtaining Udio's training data during discovery. In 2024, Sony, Universal Music, and Warner Music had jointly sued Udio, but the judge rejected their request to add more than 333 works. Sony now focuses on these 30,000 works, calling them "just a fraction" of Udio's infringing content. For developers and music platforms using AI music generators, this case signals stricter judicial scrutiny of training data copyright compliance. Sony seeks an injunction to stop further infringement and up to $150,000 per work, totaling potentially over $4.5 billion. Notably, Universal Music and Warner Music have settled and partnered with Udio, reflecting the music industry's balancing act between embracing AI and enforcing copyright.