AI Fight Complicates TikTok, Universal Music Licensing Standoff

Artificial intelligence is a driving force behind the most public fallout between music and social media behemoths in at least a decade as the industries wrestle over the proliferation of AI-generated music recordings.

Universal Music Group and TikTok Inc. continued their standoff last week over the short-form video platform’s access to the music label’s extensive catalog after their licensing deal expired Jan. 31. In a letter published by Universal a day before their pact lapsed, the record label said TikTok is “allowing the platform to be flooded with AI-generated recordings” while demanding contractual rights that could “massively dilute the royalty ...