Don’t Let AI Profit From Music Without Paying Artists

Recent signers:
Baby Jesus and 19 others have signed recently.

The Issue

Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming music creation, distribution, and monetization. AI music models are now capable of generating full songs—melodies, harmonies, lyrics, and vocal styles—by learning patterns from existing human-created music.

But here’s the problem:

Artists have no clear visibility, consent, or compensation when their work is used to train these systems.

AI music platforms are not learning in a vacuum. They are trained on:

Decades of recorded music
Stylistic patterns shaped by real artists
Vocal textures, phrasing, and emotional expression created by humans
Yet most artists:

Don’t know if their music has been used to train AI models
Can’t opt out of having their work analyzed and absorbed
Receive no payment when AI-generated music—built on collective musical knowledge—is monetized
Have no collective representation to advocate on their behalf
This creates a familiar imbalance.

We’ve seen this before with:

Radio
Streaming
Social platforms

Each time, technology advanced faster than artist protections—forcing creators to fight for compensation after systems were already entrenched.

AI is moving even faster.

Without intervention, we risk building an entire music economy where:

AI platforms profit at scale
Monetized AI songs compete with human artists
The creators whose work trained the models receive nothing
This petition proposes a forward-looking solution, not a shutdown of innovation.

 
The Solution: An AI Performance Rights Organization (AI-PRO)
This petition calls for the creation of an AI Performance Rights Organization (AI-PRO)—a regulatory and administrative body modeled after existing performance rights organizations, but designed specifically for AI-generated music.

What AI-PRO Would Do

  1. Ensure Transparency - Require AI music platforms to disclose what types of data their models are trained on, establish reporting standards for AI music generation and monetization
  2. Protect Artist Consent - Give artists the right to opt in or opt out of having their music used to train AI models respect creative autonomy, and ownership of artistic identity
  3. Guarantee Compensation - Require AI model developers (such as platforms like Suno and similar services) to contribute to a Creator Compensation Fund
    Require platforms that monetize AI-generated music to pay a small percentage of revenue into that fund, distribute payouts to artists whose work contributed to the broader musical ecosystem the AI learned from
  4. Balance Innovation With Ethics - Allow AI development to continue, ensure creators are not erased or economically displaced build a sustainable future where technology and human artistry coexist. 

This is not about tracking individual notes or styles.

It’s about acknowledging a simple truth:

If AI systems profit from the collective work of musicians, musicians deserve a share of the value created.
 
Why This Is Reasonable (and Necessary)
We already use collective compensation systems for radio and streaming
We already recognize that music generates value long after creation
AI is not replacing music—it is built from music
Without guardrails, artists lose leverage permanently
AI-PRO would establish protections before harm becomes irreversible, rather than trying to repair damage later.

This is a sponsored petition. Learn more here.

1,243

Recent signers:
Baby Jesus and 19 others have signed recently.

The Issue

Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming music creation, distribution, and monetization. AI music models are now capable of generating full songs—melodies, harmonies, lyrics, and vocal styles—by learning patterns from existing human-created music.

But here’s the problem:

Artists have no clear visibility, consent, or compensation when their work is used to train these systems.

AI music platforms are not learning in a vacuum. They are trained on:

Decades of recorded music
Stylistic patterns shaped by real artists
Vocal textures, phrasing, and emotional expression created by humans
Yet most artists:

Don’t know if their music has been used to train AI models
Can’t opt out of having their work analyzed and absorbed
Receive no payment when AI-generated music—built on collective musical knowledge—is monetized
Have no collective representation to advocate on their behalf
This creates a familiar imbalance.

We’ve seen this before with:

Radio
Streaming
Social platforms

Each time, technology advanced faster than artist protections—forcing creators to fight for compensation after systems were already entrenched.

AI is moving even faster.

Without intervention, we risk building an entire music economy where:

AI platforms profit at scale
Monetized AI songs compete with human artists
The creators whose work trained the models receive nothing
This petition proposes a forward-looking solution, not a shutdown of innovation.

 
The Solution: An AI Performance Rights Organization (AI-PRO)
This petition calls for the creation of an AI Performance Rights Organization (AI-PRO)—a regulatory and administrative body modeled after existing performance rights organizations, but designed specifically for AI-generated music.

What AI-PRO Would Do

  1. Ensure Transparency - Require AI music platforms to disclose what types of data their models are trained on, establish reporting standards for AI music generation and monetization
  2. Protect Artist Consent - Give artists the right to opt in or opt out of having their music used to train AI models respect creative autonomy, and ownership of artistic identity
  3. Guarantee Compensation - Require AI model developers (such as platforms like Suno and similar services) to contribute to a Creator Compensation Fund
    Require platforms that monetize AI-generated music to pay a small percentage of revenue into that fund, distribute payouts to artists whose work contributed to the broader musical ecosystem the AI learned from
  4. Balance Innovation With Ethics - Allow AI development to continue, ensure creators are not erased or economically displaced build a sustainable future where technology and human artistry coexist. 

This is not about tracking individual notes or styles.

It’s about acknowledging a simple truth:

If AI systems profit from the collective work of musicians, musicians deserve a share of the value created.
 
Why This Is Reasonable (and Necessary)
We already use collective compensation systems for radio and streaming
We already recognize that music generates value long after creation
AI is not replacing music—it is built from music
Without guardrails, artists lose leverage permanently
AI-PRO would establish protections before harm becomes irreversible, rather than trying to repair damage later.

This is a sponsored petition. Learn more here.

The Decision Makers

Mike O'Neill
Mike O'Neill
CEO of BMI
Elizabeth Matthews
Elizabeth Matthews
CEO of ASCAP
Martin Camacho
Martin Camacho
Co-Founder of Suno
Georg Kucscko
Georg Kucscko
Co-Founder of Suno
Mikey Shulman
Mikey Shulman
CEO of Suno

Supporter Voices

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Petition created on January 21, 2026