AI music company Suno has launched a new model family trained on licensed music, as it faces continuing copyright lawsuits from major record labels and artists.
Suno v6 was developed using material licensed from Warner Music Group, BMG and Believe, the company said. It replaces the data used to train earlier versions of Suno’s music-generation models, which create songs from written prompts.
The company has released three versions. Suno v6, aimed at paying customers, is designed to provide more predictable and controllable results, while Suno v6 Wild is an experimental option intended to produce less expected outcomes. A faster version, Suno v6 Mini, is available to all users.
Suno said it plans to retire its older models as the new family is adopted.
Suno v6 adds editing and reference tools
The new system allows users to alter sections of a track using a written instruction or a word in the lyrics. Text, images and video can also be used as references when creating music.
Users can separate an instrument from a sample and use it to make a new beat, according to the company. Suno is also planning a remixing feature, but says it will only be available for songs whose artists have opted into a programme being developed with music labels.
Jack Brody, Suno’s chief product officer, said the company believed derivative works could create new income for artists and rights holders.
“I think the music ecosystem and our partners are always looking for ways to create more revenue opportunities for their rights holders and artists. So a big part of this release is creating additional revenue streams there,” he said.
Suno has sought to address concerns about the distribution of AI-generated music by announcing plans to add a watermark to songs made on its platform. It has also introduced download limits linked to users’ subscription tiers.
Brody said the company could help tackle issues including streaming fraud and the mass uploading of low-intent material to music distributors, while arguing that platforms and distributors should ultimately decide what content they accept.
“We can help manage some of the broader ecosystem challenges like streaming fraud and kind of mass exportation and uploading to distributors that are low intent. At the end of the day, we think it is up to the distributors and the platforms to govern what content goes on there,” he said.
Copyright lawsuits continue
Suno settled a lawsuit brought by Warner Music Group last year and agreed a deal with BMG last month. However, it remains involved in legal action brought by Sony Music and Universal Music Group, as well as by artists including Jason Isbell.
The company has also been sued by users who allege that it neglected security while pursuing growth. Suno’s announcement came a day after it acknowledged that its models had been trained using YouTube videos.
Despite the disputes, Suno has raised more than 819 million dollars in funding, according to PitchBook data.
