Tencent Music Entertainment (TME), China’s largest music streaming service, has integrated DeepSeek’s AI technology into its platform, raising significant ethical and legal questions about copyright in the AI era. This partnership, announced on March 18, 2025, comes amid serious allegations that DeepSeek has been training its AI on copyrighted music without permission.
The DeepSeek Controversy
DeepSeek burst onto the AI scene in January 2025, causing concern among established AI developers by demonstrating that sophisticated AI could be developed at much lower costs than previously thought. The Chinese chatbot immediately faced accusations:
- OpenAI suspected DeepSeek of stealing elements of their large language models
- The International Confederation of Music Publishers (ICMP) presented evidence suggesting DeepSeek trained on copyrighted music without authorization
- ICMP Director General John Phelan specifically accused DeepSeek of “scraping the internet’s content, including the world’s copyright protected music, [and using] it for commercial purposes, without a license”
Evidence shows DeepSeek can reproduce entire copyrighted lyrics from artists like Taylor Swift, Jay-Z, and Ed Sheeran. When challenged, DeepSeek claims “fair use” protection — the same defense used by AI companies like Suno, Udio, and Anthropic when sued by major music rights holders.
TME’s Contradictory Position
TME’s partnership with DeepSeek appears fundamentally contradictory because:
- TME has integrated DeepSeek into its music creation tools, allowing “users to quickly create songs tailored to specific contexts or modes”
- TME has licensed music from major rights holders including Sony Music, Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, and HYBE
- These same music companies are currently suing other AI companies (like Suno) for copyright infringement
This situation mirrors Amazon’s recent partnership with AI music generation platform Suno, despite Suno facing lawsuits from the same music companies that license content to Amazon Music.## Broader Implications for AI and Copyright
The TME-DeepSeek partnership highlights fundamental questions about copyright law in the AI era:
- Is copyright law even relevant in an AI-dominated world where machines can remix and reassemble information faster than legislation can adapt?
- Can national AI policies override copyright concerns when AI development becomes a matter of competitive advantage?
- Will open-source AI development outpace proprietary models, rendering current copyright battles obsolete?
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has launched an investigation into DeepSeek, citing concerns about the company’s ties to the Chinese Communist Party and potential data privacy violations. This adds a geopolitical dimension to the already complex legal landscape.
The Double Standard
TME’s financial success—with Q4 2024 revenues of $1.02 billion (up 8.2%) and 121 million paying subscribers — stands in stark contrast to the uncertain legal position of its AI partner. The company appears comfortable allying with an AI developer suspected of copyright violations while simultaneously maintaining licensing agreements with the very rights holders fighting against similar practices elsewhere.
This situation exemplifies what some see as a growing double standard in the music industry’s approach to AI and copyright—aggressively defending rights in some contexts while partnering with potentially infringing technologies in others when financially beneficial.
As DeepSeek’s CEO Ross Liang expressed intentions “to leverage AI technology to customize our services and deliver more innovative experiences to our users”, the fundamental question remains whether copyright law can withstand the AI revolution or if new frameworks for creative rights will need to emerge.
What This Means For Artists
Copyright: Wikimedia Commons (Anirudh Koul)
For musicians and creators, this partnership represents yet another challenge in the ongoing battle to protect their work in the digital age. As AI-generated deepfakes continue to proliferate across platforms, artists face increasing difficulty distinguishing their authentic content from AI replicas.
The music industry’s inconsistent approach to AI partnerships sends mixed signals about how seriously they take copyright protection. While major labels fight against unauthorized AI use in some contexts, partnerships like TME-DeepSeek suggest financial incentives may sometimes outweigh copyright concerns.
As these contradictions play out in the global marketplace, artists would be wise to stay informed about how their work might be used to train AI systems and consider supporting initiatives like Fairly Trained that promote transparency and consent in AI development.
