Universal Music Group is partnering with AI music platform Udio, just months after suing them.
In one of the most surprising moves in music business history, Universal Music Group has announced a partnership with AI music platform Udio, just over a year after suing the company for copyright infringement.
The deal, announced October 30, 2025, signals a new chapter in how the world’s largest record label is approaching AI-generated music.
The partnership will create a new kind of AI-powered music service where fans – with artists’ permission – can remix songs, experiment with vocal styles, or even mash up multiple artists’ sounds.
Think Spotify meets GarageBand meets a social network for superfans. Udio CEO Andrew Sanchez describes it as “connection through creation,” where listeners can interact directly with the music they love.
The backstory is important: last year, Universal joined Sony and Warner in suing Udio and rival AI service Suno, claiming that their AI models were trained on copyrighted music without permission.
Now, the label is turning what was a legal battle into a collaborative opportunity, all while keeping strict controls in place.
According to UMG exec Michael Nash, the platform will be a “walled garden,” ensuring AI creations don’t compete with original tracks and that artists retain control over their work.
Only songs from artists who opt in will be available, and participants will benefit from royalties and potentially valuable data on how fans are interacting with their music.
As Sanchez puts it, a country singer might discover fans are remixing their songs into hip-hop tracks, something that could inspire new directions for the artist.
Not everyone is convinced it’s a perfect solution. The Music Artists Coalition, founded by manager Irving Azoff, raised questions about revenue splits, creative control, and how songs with multiple writers will be handled.
Universal says it’s carefully managing which parts of its catalog are made available for AI training, emphasizing rights clearance at every step.
For fans, Nash believes the opportunity is obvious. While AI-generated tracks from scratch see almost no streaming demand, the chance to remix familiar songs or mash them together is something that taps into real engagement.
Research shows 30-40% of music on social media is already altered by fans, sped up, slowed down, or remixed, suggesting a market hungry for interactive experiences rather than “AI slop.”
Suno, which is still in litigation with the labels, is far bigger than Udio in terms of users, but Nash insists that Udio’s focus on partnership and artist control gives it an edge for long-term growth.
The exact look of the new platform is still under wraps, and it’s unclear if it will continue under the Udio brand.
For now, Udio will maintain its existing service, though it has temporarily disabled downloads to prepare for the transition.
As Nash puts it: “We think that Udio has made the right bets, and we think that they’re going to put a great product into the marketplace.”
