An activist organization has claimed to have scraped millions of songs from Spotify and is getting ready to publish them publicly.
Potential Impetus for AI Training
Observers noted the apparent leak could aid AI companies looking for data to train their models.
An entity known as Anna’s Archive reported it had scraped 86 million music files from Spotify and 256 million entries of associated data such as performer and record names. Spotify, which carries more than 100 million songs, confirmed that the breach did not constitute its full inventory.
“We have identified and deactivated the nefarious user accounts that engaged in illegal scraping,” stated a Spotify representative.
The Swedish company, which has more than 700 million subscribers worldwide, added that an investigation into unauthorized access identified a external actor scraped public metadata and employed questionable methods to bypass DRM protections.
Archive's Declared Mission and Concerns
Spotify does not believe the audio taken by Anna’s Archive has been released yet. Anna’s Archive, which is known for providing links to pirated books, wrote in a blog it wanted to create a ‘historical repository’ for music.
The group asserted the audio files represented 99.6% of all music listened to by its listeners and would be shared via ‘torrents’, a method of sharing large data files online.
“Of course Spotify doesn’t have all the music in the world, but it’s a great beginning,” said Anna’s Archive, which frames its mission as “safeguarding humanity’s knowledge and heritage”.
AI Training and Intellectual Property Battleground
Ed Newton-Rex for protecting artists’ rights, remarked the breached music would likely be utilized for developing artificial intelligence systems.
“Training on illegally sourced material is sadly common in the AI industry, so this accessed music is highly likely to be used training AI models,” he stated.
The group's website alludes to LibGen, a vast online archive of pirated books that has reportedly been used by the parent company of Facebook to develop its systems.
A founder of an AI startup wrote on the professional network that individuals of the public could in theory “build their own personal free version of Spotify”. The executive said it could also enable tech companies to “train on modern music at scale”.
Copyright has become a battleground between artists, writers and content creators on one side and tech giants on the other.
Government Proposals and Responses
Across Britain, creative professionals have protested against a government suggestion to allow AI companies use protected work without consent unless the owner opts out. Almost every participant to a government call for evidence on the idea has backed artists’ apprehensions.
The secretary of state for science, research and technology told parliament this month there was “little consensus” on the issue, noting that ministers would “use the time to get this right”. The government has pledged to make regulatory plans on AI and copyright by March 2025.
