AI-Fueled Fraud: NC Man Admits to Streaming Scam

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New York, NY – Michael Smith, a North Carolina resident, just copped a plea in federal court today, admitting he rigged the music streaming game with artificial intelligence and an army of bots. Smith flooded platforms like Spotify and Apple Music with hundreds of thousands of AI-generated tracks, then used automated programs to rack up billions of fake streams.

The goal? To siphon off millions in royalty payments meant for actual musicians and songwriters. According to prosecutors, Smith created a network of bogus accounts—the ‘Bot Accounts’—and unleashed the automated streams, mimicking real listener activity to trick the streaming services’ payout systems. This wasn’t about artistic expression; it was a cold, calculated scheme to divert funds from legitimate artists.

“Although the songs and listeners were fake, the millions of dollars Smith stole was real,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. The case, prosecuted in the Southern District of New York, illustrates a new frontier in digital fraud, where AI is weaponized to exploit the complex economics of music streaming. Smith faces sentencing before Judge John G. Koeltl, and the feds are making it clear: this kind of tech-fueled theft won’t fly.