AI’s Impact on China’s Music Business Has Yet to Top the Charts

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A robot created by Chinese electronics-maker Haier plays the piano at the Shanghai New International Expo Center on March 14. Photo: VCG

While the promise of music generated by artificial intelligence (AI) has drawn significant investments to U.S. companies like Udio and Suno, their Chinese peers have taken a more targeted approach as making big profits off AI-created chart toppers remains tantalizingly out of reach.

Unlike in the U.S., where AI-driven platforms that allow users to create songs almost instantly with a text prompt have sought to challenge the conventional music industry, China’s initiatives in the space take more of a support role. Rather than trying to create Top 40 hits, they focus on enhancing song recommendation algorithms and auxiliary functions like providing soundtracks for short videos.

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U.S. firms like Udio and Suno focus on AI-generated music aimed at commercial hits, while Chinese companies use AI for supporting roles like song recommendations and soundtracks for short videos.
Chinese platforms such as Tencent Music and Douyin utilize AI to predict song popularity and provide cost-effective background music to reduce copyright fees.
AI-generated music faces challenges against classic and popular tracks in China; its main commercial success lies in non-demanding usages like stress relief, sleep aids, and background music.

AI generated, for reference only

Who’s Who

Udio: The article mentions Udio as one of the U.S. companies that have attracted significant investments for AI-generated music platforms. These platforms enable users to create songs almost instantly using text prompts, challenging the conventional music industry. However, it doesn't provide specific details about Udio's operations or achievements.

Suno: The article mentions that Suno is a U.S. company attracting significant investments with its AI-generated music technology. Unlike their Chinese counterparts, which focus on supporting roles like enhancing recommendation algorithms and providing soundtracks for short videos, U.S. companies like Suno aim to enable users to create songs instantly with text prompts, posing a challenge to the traditional music industry.

Tencent Music: Tencent Music has been developing a technology called PDM (predictive model) since 2019 to identify potential hit songs. Additionally, Tencent Music launched AI-assisted creation tools called Qimingxing to make music creation more accessible to users, in an effort to lower barriers for generating personalized music.

Kuaishou: Kuaishou is a popular Chinese short video app where creators posted 10.6 billion short videos with background music in 2023. It utilizes AI-generated music for commercial potential, particularly in providing soundtracks for these videos, helping reduce substantial copyright fees by incorporating AI music into its video creation tool, Jianying.

Douyin: Douyin, the Chinese sibling of TikTok, saw over 18 billion short videos posted in 2023 with background music. One of its key business priorities is incorporating AI music into its video creation tool, Jianying, to reduce substantial annual copyright fees incurred from popular copyrighted songs.

NetEase Cloud Music: NetEase Cloud Music has invested in AI music technology, notably acquiring Luxembourg-based AIVA in 2020. The platform aims to make music creation more accessible to users, launching Tianyin, an AI-assisted music creation tool, available to subscribers since May 20. It seeks to enhance user-generated content and lower barriers for personalized music creation.

ByteDance: ByteDance acquired the U.K.’s Jukedeck in 2019, a company known for its video music automation technology. This strategic move was part of ByteDance's investment in AI music, aligning with their broader use of AI-generated music in platforms like Douyin (TikTok's Chinese counterpart) to manage copyright costs.

AIVA: AIVA is a Luxembourg-based AI music company that received investment from NetEase Cloud Music in 2020. AIVA focuses on creating AI-generated music and is utilized by Chinese platforms to make music creation more accessible, highlighting China's strategic investment in the AI music space.

Jukedeck: Jukedeck is a U.K.-based company known for its video music automation technology. It was acquired by ByteDance in 2019. Jukedeck enables users to create music automatically for videos, focusing on making music creation more accessible and personalized.

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What Happened When

Before 2020：: ByteDance acquired the U.K.’s Jukedeck, known for its video music automation technology.

2019：: Tencent Music began developing technology called PDM (predictive model) to identify whether a song has the potential to become popular.

2020：: NetEase Cloud Music invested in Luxembourg-based AI music company AIVA.

2023：: Creators on the app Kuaishou posted 10.6 billion short videos with background music. On Douyin, the Chinese sibling of TikTok, the figure was over 18 billion.