SoundCloud Under Fire: Artists Fear AI Use of Their Music
SoundCloud's Future Plans With or Without AI?
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SoundCloud Under Fire: Artists Fear AI Use of Their Music · Source: Piotr Swat / Alamy Stock Foto
The latest debate over SoundCloud’s terms of service has once again sparked a sensitive discussion in the music community. The trigger for the discontent was, logically, an update to the terms of service, which, according to an analysis by Futurism, gave the impression that the Berlin company could use artistic content to train AI models without separate consent. This is, of course, an absolute no-no for all users of the platform. The company immediately responded with a comprehensive statement on the matter.
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Artists Demand More Transparency from SoundCloud
The relevant passage, which was added to streaming companies’ TOS in February 2024, stated that user data could be used as input for artificial intelligence, among other things, unless otherwise agreed. Naturally, this language caused considerable concern in the community, particularly with regard to intellectual property protection and control over one’s own artistic work.
SoundCloud reacted quickly to the criticism and published an official statement on May 9, 2025 (see below). In it, the Berlin-based company clarifies that it has never used artists’ content to train generative AI. The platform also emphasizes that it does not develop its own AI models and does not provide third parties with access to content for AI training.
In addition, the streaming company points to safeguards it has implemented, including a “No AI” tag that explicitly prohibits the unauthorized use of audio content for AI purposes. According to SoundCloud, the disputed clause was “misleading” and was only intended to provide legal protection for the use of AI features within the platform itself, such as personalized recommendations or fraud detection.
SoundCloud’s AI Clause: Misunderstanding or Intentional?
In an additional statement to The Verge, Marni Greenberg, SVP and Head of Communications at SoundCloud, assured that if the use of content for generative AI models is considered in the future, transparent opt-out mechanisms will be implemented in advance. This would at least give users the ability to opt out of such use. At the same time, she made it clear that licensed music tracks – such as those from major labels – may not be used for training purposes under current regulations. However, the possibility of using other content remains open, which logically leads to some uncertainty in the community.
Meanwhile, the public debate about the use of artificial intelligence in the music industry continues to grow. A number of prominent artists, including Elton John, Kate Bush and Dua Lipa, recently signed an open letter to the British Prime Minister. The initiative aims to amend the Data (Use and Access) Bill, which would legally require developers to disclose how copyrighted works are used to train AI. Composer Max Richter also spoke out against the current practice in a parliamentary hearing, describing the use of music as training material for AI systems as “unfair and inappropriate” for creative artists.
The Future of Music Platforms in the AI Age
SoundCloud thus finds itself in a complex area of tension between technological innovation and responsibility to the creative authorship of its community. Despite current attempts at appeasement, the question remains as to whether and how the platform will address this issue in the future. At a time when many in the industry are calling for greater regulation, how SoundCloud handles this debate could also become a measure of the credibility and future viability of streaming services like SoundCloud. But what happens next?
SoundCloud’s full statement on the matter
SoundCloud has always been and will remain artist-first. Our focus is on empowering artists with control, clarity, and meaningful opportunities to grow. We believe AI, when developed responsibly, can expand creative potential—especially when guided by principles of consent, attribution, and fair compensation.
SoundCloud has never used artist content to train AI models, nor do we develop AI tools or allow third parties to scrape or use SoundCloud content from our platform for AI training purposes. In fact, we implemented technical safeguards, including a “no AI” tag on our site to explicitly prohibit unauthorized use.
The February 2024 update to our Terms of Service was intended to clarify how content may interact with AI technologies within SoundCloud’s own platform. Use cases include personalized recommendations, content organization, fraud detection, and improvements to content identification with the help of AI Technologies.
Any future application of AI at SoundCloud will be designed to support human artists, enhancing the tools, capabilities, reach and opportunities available to them on our platform. Examples include improving music recommendations, generating playlists, organizing content, and detecting fraudulent activity. These efforts are aligned with existing licensing agreements and ethical standards. Tools like Musiio are strictly used to power artist discovery and content organization, not to train generative AI models.
We understand the concerns raised and remain committed to open dialogue. Artists will continue to have control over their work, and we’ll keep our community informed every step of the way as we explore innovation and apply AI technologies responsibly, especially as legal and commercial frameworks continue to evolve.
More Information
- SoundCloud website
- More about SoundCloud
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3 responses to “SoundCloud Under Fire: Artists Fear AI Use of Their Music”
AI is not technological innovation.
AI makes up part of the Technopoly that will use unethical surveillance methods to control and bring an end to humanity’s freedom and natural evolution.
The de-evolution of the human race began with the internet. AI is the evolution of the internet.
Our species can evolve backward or revert to more primitive states over time and AI will restructure natural order including the hierarchy of all living organisms on earth.
Human evolution is nearing it’s end. The evidence of it is in everything now, from who we choose as our leaders to the rapidly declining level of intelligence humans are capable of using to judge reality.
It certainly depends on what you would define as reality. When you look at the current world politics and technological advancement, and state that’s your reality, then yes, I agree with your bleak view on life. This is sad, and your last sentence then reflects on you, I’m afraid—something to think about.
Lmao they thought they sounded intelligent, intellectual and insightful and then buried themselves on that last sentence. Womp womp lmao