German Court Finds AI Music Service Suno Guilty of Copyright Infringement

On July 31, 2026, a Munich court found that Suno, an AI music generation platform, infringed the copyrights represented by GEMA by training its models on songs like "Rasputin" and "Forever Young" without a licence. GEMA had sued in January 2025 after Suno ignored a request to negotiate a licence, and the case focused on six well-known tracks that the AI reproduced almost note-for-note from simple prompts. Although Suno conceded it had used GEMA’s repertoire, it argued that training did not require permission; the court dismissed that defence and highlighted that the data had been obtained via stream-ripping from the open web.

Judge Elke Schwager ruled that German law applies because the model’s outputs are delivered to users in Germany, extending jurisdiction to training performed abroad. The judgment includes an injunction and a disclosure order compelling Suno to reveal revenue generated from the six songs, which will inform future damages. This is the second German victory against an AI firm in nine months and is expected to be cited in ongoing U.S. suits by Universal, Sony and others, as well as a Danish case brought by Koda. Suno has announced plans to appeal, but the ruling can be enforced while the appeal proceeds.