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Google and Universal Music Group are in talks to license artists’ melodies and voices for songs generated by artificial intelligence, four people familiar with the talks have told the Financial Times.
The rise of generative AI has bred a surge in “deepfake” songs that can convincingly mimic the voices, lyrics or sound of established artists, often without their consent.
In April an AI-produced song that mimicked the voices of Drake and The Weeknd was pulled from streaming services after it went viral online. Frank Sinatra’s voice has been used on a version of the hip-hop song “Gangsta’s Paradise” while Johnny Cash’s has been deployed on the pop single “Barbie Girl”.
UMG, home to artists including Taylor Swift, Elton John and Drake, has been waging an effort to clear out “lower-quality” songs from streaming platforms. It is concerned AI services are scraping its back catalogue of songs without permission or payment to train computer models to create songs that imitate popular artists.
Discussions between Google and UMG are at an early stage and no product launch is imminent. The goal of the talks, according to people with knowledge of the situation, is to develop a tool for fans to create tracks of their musical heroes legitimately, and pay the owners of the copyrights for it.
Warner Music, which includes Madonna and Heidi Klum among its artists, has also been talking to Google about a product, said a person familiar with the matter.
Robert Kyncl, chief executive of Warner Music, yesterday told investors that “with the right framework in place”, AI could “enable fans to pay their heroes the ultimate compliment through a new level of user-driven content . . . including new cover versions and mash-ups”.
Here’s what else I’m keeping tabs on today:
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Results: Disney, which yesterday announced a $2bn push into US sports betting, releases earnings. Private equity group Brookfield Asset Management and gaming company Roblox also report results.
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Economic data: Consumer prices in Mexico are expected to have eased last month.
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Joe Biden in New Mexico: The president will make an argument for more manufacturing jobs to be moved to the US as well as defend his environmental programme during a speech in New Mexico.
Five more top stories
1. Consumer prices in China have declined for the first time since early 2021 as the world’s second-largest economy continues to buck the global trend of high inflation. The consumer price index fell 0.3 per cent year on year in July, according to official statistics released earlier today. Read more on the Chinese economy’s slide into deflation.
2. Donald Trump has warned that he may be forced off the campaign trail to defend himself against what he called “bullshit” criminal charges. The former president railed against political opponents and the justice department yesterday at a campaign speech in southern New Hampshire. Read more of the former president’s comments.
3. John Rogers, Goldman Sachs’ chief of staff and one of the bank’s most influential executives, is stepping back from his role. Rogers, 67, is handing over his responsibilities to Russell Horwitz, a former Goldman partner who left the group in 2020 to join Citadel, the investment company run by Ken Griffin. Read more on the move by the executive dubbed the “board whisperer”.
4. WeWork has warned for the first time that it faces “substantial doubt” about its ability to continue as a going concern. The US office space company, once valued at $47bn, said its outlook depended on a series of plans including further restructuring and a search for additional capital over the next 12 months. Read more on WeWork’s scramble to survive.
5. Italy’s government has partially backtracked on plans to impose a windfall levy on its banking sector. The finance ministry said yesterday the levy would be capped at 0.1 per cent of assets, much lower than initially thought. Read more on how shares in Italy’s biggest banks reacted to the clarification.
The Big Read
China dominates the supplies of many of the key building blocks for clean energy technology. Its control has drawn comparisons to the high level of influence that Saudi Arabia enjoys in the oil market — and potentially complicates the world’s transition to renewable energy.
We’re also reading . . .
Chart of the day
Orange juice futures have surged to all time-highs as a series of hurricanes and the spread of an incurable disease have devastated thousands of acres of citrus crops in the US.
Take a break from the news
New York’s West Village has become the centre of a dining revolution. Kyle Beechey traces the former counter-cultural hub’s journey back to fashionability after years of stagnation.
Additional contributions from Tee Zhuo and Benjamin Wilhelm
