Music’s biggest labels are weeks away from major AI licensing deals

Universal Music and Warner Music, record labels whose catalogs include Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, and Charli XCX, are within weeks of striking licensing deals that could redefine how the music industry handles the AI era, according to the Financial Times.  

Talks are underway with tech heavyweights like Google and Spotify and a slew of AI startups including Klay Vision, ElevenLabs, and Stability AI, the report says. Some — notably music-generating ventures Suno and Udio — are actively involved in copyright disputes with the labels.

Negotiations have reportedly focused on how labels license their songs for training AI models and creating AI-generated music. Compensation is a big part of it, and labels are apparently pushing for something like streaming, where each play earns a micropayment. To make this work, AI companies would need to develop software to track how and when music is used.