A musician from North Carolina is currently in the spotlight of a large-scale fraud probe that is gaining attention in the music sector. Michael Smith, previously unknown, is now being charged with leading a deceptive plan that gained him over $10 million. But what is causing surprise is not only the quantity, but the method he used: utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) and bots to boost streaming figures on services such as Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube.
Furthermore, the supposed plan wasn’t an isolated incident. According to court documents, Smith ran this operation for nearly seven years, working alongside a music promoter and an AI music company’s CEO to push AI-generated songs to millions of fake listeners.
A web of bots and AI-generated tunes
During the period from 2017 to 2024, it is said that Smith uploaded a vast number of AI-generated songs to popular music streaming services. However, that wasn’t the only thing. He then used automated bots to play these songs repeatedly, circumventing the platforms’ fraud detection systems by hiding their actions with virtual private networks (VPNs). Smith’s aim was clear: Rake in royalties from billions of fake streams.
Court records reveal emails sent by Smith in 2018, where he discussed how to avoid raising red flags with the streaming platforms. He spoke of the need for large quantities of content, streamed in small amounts, to evade detection. The operation’s complexity continued to unfold, with Smith allegedly running more than 1,000 bot accounts across 52 cloud services, streaming as many as 636 songs per day per bot.
Billions of fake streams over five years
At its peak, Smith’s operation was estimated to generate around 661,440 streams per day, resulting in more than $3,000 in daily royalties. Over time, those numbers skyrocketed. By early 2024, Smith bragged in an email about his operation generating over 4 billion fake streams and $12 million in royalties since 2019. He had manipulated the system in a way that turned false streams into real cash, money that should have gone to artists whose work was legitimately streamed.
Authorities, however, were not amused by his entrepreneurial spirit. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams labeled the scheme as “brazen,” highlighting how the fraud deprived rightful artists of their earnings while Smith cashed in on AI-generated songs and bots.
Facing the music in court
While getting ready for his court appearance, Smith is confronting severe ramifications. He has been accused of wire fraud, participating in wire fraud conspiracy, and engaging in money laundering conspiracy, with each offense carrying possible 20-year jail terms. The previously effective strategy of manipulating the music industry is now the very obstacle that could permanently mute him. This case serves as a reminder that while technology and innovation push the boundaries of what’s possible, fraud will always strike the wrong chord.
Featured image credit: Furkan Demirkaya / Midjourney
