Record Labels in Talks to License Music to AI Firms Udio, Suno
Major music companies are in talks to license their work to artificial intelligence startups Udio and Suno, deals that would establish a framework for how AI companies compensate recording artists for their work, according to people familiar with the discussions.
Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment are pushing to collect license fees for their work and also receive a small amount of equity in Suno and Udio, two leaders among a crop of companies that use generative AI to help make music. Any deal would help settle lawsuits between the two sides, said the people, who declined to be identified because the talks could fall apart.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
39 minutes ago
- Forbes
Sunrise Spirits Will Bring Classic Mecha Toys To Western Fans
Sunrise Spirits is a new toy brand for classic mecha anime. Sunrise is responsible for most of the major mecha anime ever made, and Bandai Spirits is now looking to honor this legacy with a new toy brand. Heading up this new Sunrise Spirits initiative is Yoshinari Kimura, Assistant Manager on the Robot Product Planning Team at Bandai Spirits. Following the increased accessibility and popularity of Sunrise mecha anime outside of Japan, Kimura wanted to ensure that Western fans weren't left behind. 'Given that people can now easily discover and watch Sunrise titles through social media, the official YouTube channel, and an ever-increasing selection of streaming platforms, we felt it was important to build an accessible solution for fans to purchase Sunrise merchandise. Through this initiative, we wanted to create a 'three-dimensional portal' for fans, both new and old. Furthermore, we wanted to clarify where people were able to purchase our products and figure out what would be necessary for us to sell them on an ongoing basis. The Tamashii Nations store in New York is one of many outside Japan. 'After carefully analyzing the balance between supply and demand, we concluded that the best way forward was to sell products through our own stores and an official online shop. Finally, when thinking about how to present the lineup within our stores in an accessible manner, we settled on the project name: Sunrise Spirits. 'The purpose of Sunrise Spirits is to serve as an entry point for both new fans and those who already have fond memories of Sunrise titles, and to maintain our lineup as a permanent platform. Thanks to our fans' passionate support, we have already expanded our presence to eight stores in Japan and another eight official Tamashii Nations store locations overseas, including New York City.' FEATURED | Frase ByForbes™ Unscramble The Anagram To Reveal The Phrase Pinpoint By Linkedin Guess The Category Queens By Linkedin Crown Each Region Crossclimb By Linkedin Unlock A Trivia Ladder Considering the depth and breadth of Sunrise mecha anime, the Sunrise Spirits brand has its work cut out for it, but it's already well on its way to covering off some of the more major titles. 'We currently have seven products available for purchase, including five from 1980s-era series such as Dunbine, Dougram, and Xabungle (shown below), as well as Zegapain from the 2000s. In addition to developing this extensive lineup, we have also updated each product's key visuals to make them more appealing to a wider audience. The classic mecha Xabungle is also getting the Sunrise Spirits treatment. 'In addition, we also plan on adding Robot Spirits Villkiss from the 2010s anime Cross Ange to our lineup in 2025. There are numerous exciting animated series out there, so we plan to continue exploring product lineups that cater to different age groups while reviewing the status of existing items. 'We really want our overseas fans to enjoy the same purchasing experience and potential for discovery that are available to Japanese consumers. With characters becoming something of a global language these days, we feel it is important to offer both virtual and real-world entry points and touchpoints. 'In the years to come, we expect that continued internet and social media usage will result in decreased language barriers and a more border-free world. As manufacturers of physical goods, we believe it will be increasingly important for us to offer a platform where fans can purchase our products. Our goal is to create opportunities for consumers to experience, across numerous contexts, the reassurance of purchasing products on-demand directly from an official supplier. Additionally, with initiatives like the Sunrise Robot Laboratory, we can now explore new ways to present and share classic series. In 2025, Sunrise Spirits will feature products from both Walker Gallia and Xabungle. We look forward to people visiting our stores and checking out these exciting new releases for themselves. In the meantime, we hope fans will continue to enjoy and support our work.' Sunrise Spirits toy releases are currently available at the Tamashii Nations New York store as well as online via Amazon. Follow me on X, Facebook and YouTube. I also manage Mecha Damashii and am currently featured in the Giant Robots exhibition currently touring Japan.
Yahoo
44 minutes ago
- Yahoo
AI linked to a fourfold increase in productivity growth and 56% wage premium, while jobs grow even in the most easily automated roles: PwC 2025 Global AI Jobs Barometer
Workers see rising wages: AI-skilled workers see average 56% wage premium in 2024, double the 25% in the previous year Confounding expectations, data shows job availability grew 38% in the roles more exposed to AI, albeit below the growth rate in less exposed occupations Industries most exposed to AI saw 3x higher growth in revenue per employee (27%) compared to those least exposed (9%) The skills sought by employers are changing 66% faster in jobs most exposed to AI LONDON, June 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- AI is making workers more valuable, productive, and able to command higher wage premiums, with job numbers rising even in roles considered most automatable, according to PwC's 2025 Global AI Jobs Barometer, released today. The report is based on analysis of close to a billion job ads from six continents. The report finds that since GenAI's proliferation in 2022, productivity growth has nearly quadrupled in industries most exposed to AI (e.g. financial services, software publishing), rising from 7% from 2018-2022 to 27% from 2018-2024. In contrast, the rate of productivity growth in industries least exposed to AI (e.g. mining, hospitality) declined from 10% to 9% over the same period. 2024 data shows that the most AI exposed industries are now seeing 3x higher growth in revenue per employee than the least exposed. Carol Stubbings, Global Chief Commercial Officer, PwC, said: "This research shows that the power of AI to deliver for businesses is already being realised. And we are only at the start of the transition. As we roll out Agentic AI at enterprise scale, we are seeing that the right combination of technology and culture can create dramatic new opportunities to reimagine how organisations work and create value." Job numbers are rising in virtually every type of AI-exposed occupation, even those highly automatable Contrary to some expectations, the data from the report does not show job or wage destruction from AI. While occupations with lower exposure to AI saw strong job growth (65%) in recent years (2019-2024), growth remained robust even in more exposed occupations (38%). Within more exposed occupations, jobs can be further divided into 'automated' (i.e., the job contains some tasks that AI can carry out) and 'augmented' (i.e., where AI helps a human do their job better). Across both classifications between 2019-24, job numbers are growing in every industry analysed, although augmented jobs are generally growing faster. Wages are growing twice as fast in AI-exposed industries Wages are growing twice as fast in industries more exposed to AI versus less exposed, with wages rising in both automatable and augmentable jobs. Jobs which require AI skills also offer a wage premium (over similar roles that don't require AI skills) in every industry analysed, with the average premium hitting 56%, up from 25% last year. Jobs that require such AI skills also continue to grow faster than all jobs – rising 7.5% from last year, even as total job postings fell 11.3%. Joe Atkinson, Global Chief AI Officer, PwC, said: "In contrast to worries that AI could cause sharp reductions in the number of jobs available – this year's findings show jobs are growing in virtually every type of AI-exposed occupation, including highly automatable ones. AI is amplifying and democratizing expertise, enabling employees to multiply their impact and focus on higher-level responsibilities. With the right foundations, both companies and workers can re-define their roles and industries and emerge leaders in their field, particularly as the full gambit of applications becomes clearer." The skills earthquake accelerates – AI is creating deep change in the skills workers need to succeed While the picture on productivity, wages and jobs is broadly positive, the research does highlight the need for workers and businesses to adapt to a much faster pace of change. The skills sought by employers are changing 66% faster in occupations most exposed to AI, up from 25% last year. What it takes to succeed in AI-exposed jobs is changing in other ways. Employer demand for formal degrees is declining for all jobs, but especially quickly for AI-exposed jobs. The percentage of jobs AI augments that require a degree fell 7 percentage points between 2019 and 2024 from 66% to 59%, and 9 percentage points (53% to 44%) for jobs AI automates. The findings show that AI's impact on women and men may be unequal – in every country analysed, more women than men are in AI-exposed roles, suggesting the skills pressure facing women will be higher. Pete Brown, Global Workforce Leader, PwC, said: "AI's rapid advance is not just re-shaping industries, but fundamentally altering the workforce and the skills required. This is not a situation that employers can easily buy their way out of. Even if they can pay the premium required to attract talent with AI skills, those skills can quickly become out of date without investment in the systems to help the workforce learn." The AI business imperative If businesses are to turbocharge their growth and leverage the opportunity afforded by AI, they must put AI front-and-centre, now. The report recommends five key actions for businesses: Use AI for enterprise-wide transformation. Treat AI as a growth strategy, not just an efficiency strategy. Prioritise Agentic AI. Enable your workforce to have the skills to make the most of AI's power. Unlock AI's transformative potential by building trust. About the PwC 2025 Global AI Jobs Barometer The AI Jobs Barometer analysed close to a billion job ads and thousands of company financial reports across six continents to reveal AI's impact on jobs, wages, skills, and productivity. The Barometer includes some of the most recent available data on AI's impact including the latest available job ads and company reports through the end of 2024. We define a job as 'AI-exposed' if it contains many tasks in which AI can be used according to the well-established AI Occupational Exposure index. Definitions: 'More exposed' jobs are the 50% of jobs with greater AI exposure; 'Less exposed' jobs are the 50% of jobs with lower AI exposure; 'Most exposed' jobs are the 25% of jobs with the greatest AI exposure. We use the IMF's methodology to separately analyse AI-exposed jobs that are highly automatable (which means the job contains many tasks AI can perform) versus jobs that are highly augmentable (which means the job contains many tasks in which AI supports human expertise and judgment). You can read the full report and learn more about the key takeaways for business at About PwC At PwC, we help clients build trust and reinvent so they can turn complexity into competitive advantage. We're a tech-forward, people-empowered network with more than 370,000 people in 149 countries. Across audit and assurance, tax and legal, deals and consulting we help build, accelerate and sustain momentum. Find out more at SOURCE PwC Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Fast Company
an hour ago
- Fast Company
5 read-it-later alternatives now that Pocket is shutting down
It's official: Mozilla has announced that its extremely handy read-it-later app Pocket will be shutting down on July 8, 2025, with user data exports available until October 8, 2025. If this leaves you looking for a new home for your saved articles, videos, and web pages, the good news is you've still got plenty of excellent options. Here are five solid alternatives to Pocket that offer a variety of features and pricing structures to suit your needs. Matter Matter is a premium read-it-later solution that goes beyond simply saving articles. For one thing, it also lets you read email newsletters in an environment that's superior to dealing with them in your inbox. Available in iOS and web versions, it also offers powerful highlighting and annotation tools that allow you to capture your thoughts directly on the text. The anpp integrates with popular third-party services and curates a daily digest of interesting articles from your saved sources, adding a discovery element. There's a free version available with an uncapped read-later library, mobile and web extensions, and sharing features. Matter Premium starts at $8 a month and includes text-to-speech, newsletter sync, unlimited highlighting and note-taking, Kindle export, and other goodies. Readwise Reader If you're already familiar with Readwise for its highlight export features, then Readwise Reader is a natural extension. It boasts a clean interface, strong highlighting and note-taking capabilities, text-to-speech, AI features, and the ability to import various content types (web articles, PDFs, newsletters, YouTube transcripts, and more). Readwise Reader is included with a Readwise subscription, which offers a free 30-day trial and then runs $10 per month. Raindrop If you're a highly visual person or deal with a wide variety of content formats, this one's for you. While many read-it-later apps focus primarily on text, Raindrop shines as a universal bookmark manager that's both visually appealing and versatile. You can save articles, images, videos, PDFs, and even entire collections of links while leveraging organization features like tags, nested collections, and a powerful search engine. Raindrop offers a pretty generous free plan with unlimited bookmarks, collections, and devices. The Pro plan runs $28 per year and adds AI suggestions for organization, full-text search, a permanent library (copies of saved pages), more upload space, cloud backup, and other enhancements. Recall It then uses AI to summarize the interesting bits from your saved content. You can ask it questions about the content, create notes, and organize it all in one central place. Recall offers a free plan which includes 10 free content summaries, unlimited read-it-later storage, and unlimited personal notes. The 'Plus' plan starts at $10 per month and offers unlimited content summaries, automatic categorization, unlimited AI questions, and more. Instapaper For those of us of a certain… well, vintage, Instapaper is something of a household name. A pioneer in the read-it-later space that's now almost old enough to vote, it saves and presents articles in a clean, minimalist format that's ideal for focused reading. It's straightforward to use as well, offering offline reading capabilities, adjustable fonts, and simple highlighting. If your primary goal is distraction-free reading of saved articles, Instapaper is worth a look. Instapaper offers a free version with unlimited article saving, syncing, folders, and integration with third-party apps. Instapaper Premium starts at $6 per month and includes full-text search, a permanent archive of articles, unlimited notes, text-to-speech, speed reading, and an ad-free website.
