SoundCloud recently updated its terms of use to respond directly to users who have been vocal on social media about the platform’s approach to artificial intelligence. Earlier this year, the company updated its usage policies, which included wording that users interpreted as granting SoundCloud the legal ability to train AI on audio uploaded to its platform. This perception understandably created a huge sense of panic within their user community, leading to a strong reaction from the company’s top brass.
In an open letter published on Wednesday, SoundCloud’s CEO, Eliah Seton, sought to clarify the company’s intentions regarding AI integration. He understood the expanded language in the new terms was overreaching. Creators, developers and designers alike were confused as to what this lack of clarity actually meant. The updates were made quietly and did not initially attract widespread attention until users raised concerns over potential misuse of their content.
Seton further emphasized that SoundCloud is using AI to improve the user experience. They are building things like AI-driven, personalized recommendations and taste aggregators or fraud and money laundering prevention tools. He promised users that any of their uploaded content would be protected from removal. It won’t be used for the training of generative AI models meant to recreate voices, music, or likenesses.
“To make it absolutely clear SoundCloud will not use content to train generative AI models that aim to replicate or synthesize a voice, music, or likeness.” – Eliah Seton
SoundCloud’s terms of use page, recently updated in January of this year, can be found here: SoundCloud Terms of Use. The full text of Seton’s open letter is available on Musically and the company’s press page at SoundCloud Press.
Seton’s letter goes a long way to assuring candor. It helps establish user trust, at a moment when other companies are still testing the waters of what AI can do. SoundCloud’s answers to these issues, in their own words, as the platform seeks to re-affirm its pledge to creators’ rights. Simultaneously, the platform has used technology to expand its capabilities.