Sony and UMG accuse Suno of 'model laundering' in new lawsuit
Sony and Universal Music Group filed another copyright suit against Suno, arguing that its v6 model was trained on outputs from earlier models that used unlicensed music. The labels call this practice 'model laundering' and say v6 inherits the earlier infringement. Suno has said v6 was trained from scratch with new data, including user creations, but has not provided more details.
Sony and Universal Music Group have filed a further copyright case against Suno. They contend that Suno’s v6 was trained using outputs from earlier models, which the labels say relied on unlicensed music taken from YouTube and elsewhere. The labels describe this as “model laundering.” Sony and UMG have not signed a licensing deal with Suno.
Suno has said v6 was built from scratch with fresh data, including material from users; it later told Engadget that this includes user creations but gave no further detail. Sony also alleges distillation, claiming v6 was taught to mimic prior “teacher” models. The labels argue that unless Suno genuinely starts over, its models remain tied to allegedly unauthorized copies.
The dispute could influence how AI music tools source training data and how courts treat models built from earlier models. Artists and rights holders may see stronger arguments for tracing provenance and compensation, while developers and users could face higher compliance costs, altered features, or licensing requirements. It may also push more firms toward explicit deals with labels, though outcomes remain uncertain.