A man created thousands of fake accounts to stream AI songs billions of times and pocket $8 million in royalties

THE DECODER / 3/25/2026

📰 NewsSignals & Early TrendsIndustry & Market Moves

Key Points

  • A North Carolina man pleaded guilty to a scheme that used thousands of fake accounts to generate billions of streaming plays for AI songs.
  • The scam targeted streaming platforms to collect royalty payments, resulting in over $8 million in illicit proceeds.
  • The case highlights how AI-generated music can be exploited through streaming fraud rather than purely through content creation.
  • The guilty plea underscores the ongoing need for stronger platform detection and anti-abuse controls for bot traffic and fake engagement.

AI songs, fake accounts, billions of bot plays: a North Carolina man has pleaded guilty to scamming streaming platforms out of more than eight million dollars.

The article A man created thousands of fake accounts to stream AI songs billions of times and pocket $8 million in royalties appeared first on The Decoder.