EGOT-winning artist John Legend joined Universal Music Group Chief Digital Officer Michael Nash and the leaders of Udio, Stability AI, Splice and NVIDIA for a panel discussion on AI and the future of music.
The session, titled The Sound of Intelligence, took place on Thursday (July 9) at the seventh AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva, which is convened by the United Nations’ International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
The panel, which examined how AI is changing music from discovery to fan engagement, brought UMG together with four companies it has struck AI partnerships with over the past year.
Among them is Udio, the AI music platform led by CEO Andrew Sanchez.
UMG, alongside the other major music companies, sued Udio for copyright infringement in 2024, before settling the case in October 2025 and agreeing to launch a licensed AI music platform together.
Stability AI, led by CEO Prem Akkaraju, formed a strategic alliance with UMG in October 2025 to develop AI music creation tools.
Splice, led by CEO Kakul Srivastava, struck its own deal with UMG in December 2025 to collaborate on AI music tools.
NVIDIA, represented on the panel by VP and GM of Media and Entertainment Richard Kerris, partnered with UMG in January 2026 on AI for music creation and discovery.
UMG and Sony Music are still litigating against rival AI music firm Suno, which the majors sued alongside Udio in 2024.
Legend said at the UN summit AI had “penetrated into our business”, with many artists using it “in healthy ways”.
He told the panel that AI “can bring shortcuts and augmentations” to an artist’s work, but urged musicians not to “forget the core of what makes you interesting and special”.
He said protecting creators through policy was essential to keeping music a “viable career for artists“.
“It’s about making sure all working musicians and creatives have the opportunity to make a living. It requires systems, structures and protections.”
John Legend
“I want us to treasure the role that great art plays in our lives,” said Legend.
“Treasuring also means requiring policy which protects the creators, so it is a viable career for artists.”
“It’s about making sure all working musicians and creatives have the opportunity to make a living. It requires systems, structures and protections.”
“What we are doing is not disposable and should be treasured by society.”
Michael Nash, Chief Digital Office at UMG said that “Artist[s] activate the nexus, the union of culture and technology” and so “from the point of view of UMG, our conversations around AI come from a simple philosophy: center the conversation on artists, defend their rights, advance their interests, from that foundation you build all the commercial and creativity opportunities.”
“From the point of view of UMG, our conversations around AI come from a simple philosophy: center the conversation on artists, defend their rights, advance their interests, from that foundation you build all the commercial and creativity opportunities.”
Michael Nash, UMG
He added: “When you put exciting tools in the hands of artists, they will create exciting artwork. It is not the tools that are creating the exciting artwork, it is the artists expression of their voice and vision utilizing those tools that is what I have faith in”
“We are looking for more partners of the same quality, commitment and conviction like the ones with us here today. We want to ensure that the human artistry from brilliant creative forces benefits from these new opportunities to reach audiences around the world. That is the true potential of the technology.”
Udio’s Sanchez said the challenges of generative AI are “different from music inventions in the past”.
“We need to be honest that the challenges of Generative AI technology are different from music inventions in the past,” he said.
“Today we are talking about creation, which is such a fundamentally human thing. We are building artist superfan experiences that are empowered by AI. The human sits front and center. Our north star is [to create] an experience for the fan to deepen a connection, with a song, music or artist.”
When discussing Splice’s approach to AI, Splice CEO Kakul Srivastava said: “Our new creative tools are AI based, centred on human sounds, with real relationships, where artists are remunerated in training.”
Added Srivastava: “When you shape a sample that is coming from a real artist, the original artist is remunerated. We are the first company to do this at scale. This is the model that we need to adopt in our industry so that there is a connection point to human artistry behind the scenes.”
Prem Akkaraju, CEO, Stability AI, said: “There are three things that make Stability AI different; we still release open source models, we have been licensed since day one, and every single person on the team is a musician, DJ or producer. Being artists affects every part of the development of our [artist-centric] product.”
NVIDIA’s Richard Kerris, VP and GM of Media and Entertainment, said he views AI “more as an actionable assistant rather than a replacement” for musicians. and “AI will inspire a lot more musicians.”
He added: “It is a tool to be used to be played with, break it, experiment with it and that is what is going to bring excitement with it.
“It is artist- first. The creativity goes hand in hand with control, and to make sure the artists rights are respected, and [we need] to make sure there are guardrails on the models that are built. As long as you have those things in place, the creativity will open up.”
UMG‘s AI partnerships announced since 2025 also include deals with BandLab, SoundLabs and KLAY Vision.
The UMG-Udio licensed AI music platform is set to launch this year.
Elsewhere at the UN’s AI summit, the opening keynote came from ABBA co-founder Björn Ulvaeus, President of the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC).
Ulvaeus called for the works used to train generative AI to be licensed, with creators receiving a share of AI subscription revenues.
“Our works went in. We should be paid for what went in,” said Ulvaeus.
“The infrastructure [for licensing] already exists. The principle is already established.”
“What is missing is the political will to require it for everyone, not just those powerful enough to sue.”
Ulvaeus cited the ABBA Voyage virtual concert as an example of technology built with creators rather than at their expense.
“We chose it. We participated in it. We are paid for it,” said Ulvaeus.
“AI for good isn’t a slogan. It is a contract.”
Ulvaeus warned that the decisions being made now will shape the creative economy for decades.
“Human creativity is not the enemy of artificial intelligence. It is the reason artificial intelligence exists.”
A study commissioned by CISAC in 2024 estimated that generative AI could take 24% of music creators’ revenues by 2028 if current trends continue.
Creators at CISAC‘s centenary General Assembly in Paris signed a declaration in June 2026 calling for human creators to be protected and remunerated in the AI era.
Ulvaeus concluded by calling for creators to be treated as partners in the future of AI: “We deserve a place at the table. We deserve a share of the harvest.”Music Business Worldwide