Musician charged with $10M streaming royalties fraud using AI and bots

North Carolina musician Michael Smith has been indicted for allegedly defrauding over $10 million in streaming royalties from platforms like Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Music, and YouTube Music. Between 2017 and 2024, Smith reportedly inflated music streams using AI-generated songs streamed by thousands of bots. He collaborated with an unnamed music promoter and the CEO of an AI music company to acquire hundreds of thousands of AI-generated tracks, which he uploaded to various streaming services. To evade detection, Smith utilized virtual private networks (VPNs) for his bots. At the height of his operation, he managed over 1,000 bot accounts, which could generate approximately 661,440 streams daily, leading to estimated earnings of over $1.2 million annually. Smith's fraudulent activities resulted in more than 4 billion fake streams and $12 million in royalties since 2019. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams stated that Smith's actions deprived legitimate musicians and rights holders of their rightful earnings. He faces serious charges, including wire fraud and money laundering, each potentially carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

- Musician Michael Smith indicted for $10 million streaming fraud.

- Used AI-generated songs and bots to inflate streaming numbers.

- Managed over 1,000 bot accounts to generate fake streams.

- Fraud resulted in over 4 billion fake streams and $12 million in royalties.

- Faces charges of wire fraud and money laundering, with severe penalties.