Suno claims AI music training on copyrighted songs is ‘fair use’

Following a recent lawsuit by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) against music generation startups Udio and Suno, Suno admitted in a court filing that it trained its AI model using copyrighted songs. Suno claimed this was legal under the fair-use doctrine.

The RIAA’s lawsuit, filed on 24 June, alleges that both startups used copyrighted music without permission to train their models. Suno’s admission is the first direct acknowledgement of this practice. Suno CEO Mikey Shulman defended the use of copyrighted material on the open internet, comparing it to a kid learning to write rock songs after listening to the genre.

The RIAA responded by calling Suno’s actions ‘industrial scale infringement’ that does not qualify as fair use. They argued that such practices harm artists by repackaging their work and competing directly with the originals. The outcome of this case, still in its early stages, could set a significant precedent for AI model training and copyright law.