Leading music corporations have launched a copyright infringement case against the artificial intelligence company Anthropic.
The lawsuit, spearheaded by Universal Music Group and Concord Music Group, claims the AI firm systematically copied and used thousands of copyrighted songs without permission.
The plaintiffs allege Anthropic unlawfully obtained more than 20,000 musical works, including lyrics, melodies, and written sheet music. This content was allegedly used to train the company’s conversational AI system, known as Claude.
The complaint lists a wide range of artists whose work was reportedly used, featuring global superstars such as Elton John, The Rolling Stones, and Neil Diamond. Independent publisher Concord, which represents acts like Korn, Common, and Killer Mike, is also a key plaintiff.
In a statement, the music groups stated the total financial claim could surpass $3 billion. A settlement of this size would rank among the most significant copyright judgments ever awarded in a non-class action suit in the United States.
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The legal filing argues Anthropic’s public image is at odds with its actions. Despite branding itself as a company focused on AI safety and research, Anthropic’s operations rely on the systematic theft of copyrighted creative works, the lawsuit contends.
This case follows a similar pattern from a previous lawsuit, Bartz v. Anthropic, which concluded last year. During the evidence-sharing phase of that earlier litigation, the music publishers say they uncovered proof of the widespread song copying that forms the basis of this new complaint.
The Bartz case ended with a $1.5 billion ruling in favor of a large group of authors. That prior judgment established an important legal distinction: while using copyrighted material for AI training may be permissible, illegally downloading that material is not. The judge in that case, William Alsup, ruled that Anthropic crossed a line by how it acquired the content, not necessarily by how it was used.
Via: Reuters