German Court Rules Suno AI Violated Copyright in Landmark GEMA Case

The Munich I Regional Court ruled in favor of German music rights organization GEMA in its copyright infringement lawsuit against AI music platform Suno. The court found that Suno's AI model was trained on copyrighted works without authorization, including songs by Helene Fischer and Boney M., and that the AI's outputs demonstrated 'memorization' of these works. Suno, valued at approximately $5.4 billion, was ordered to pay damages and disclose revenues earned from the unauthorized use. The case was filed on January 21, 2025, and the verdict is not yet final. GEMA CEO Tobias Holzmüller hailed the decision as 'a good day for creators and the cultural landscape in Europe,' while Suno disagreed, stating the ruling is based on a false representation of its technology and US law, and is considering an appeal. The court's interactive reconstruction of the evidence used prompts to generate AI versions of 'Atemlos' by Helene Fischer and 'Daddy Cool' by Boney M., demonstrating near-identical melodies and timbres. Notably, the AI version of 'You're My Heart, You're My Soul' by Dieter Bohlen and Thomas Anders differed only in tempo (118 vs 117 bpm) and one chord (F# minor 7 instead of A major).