Man who used AI bots to out-stream Taylor Swift is jailed for fraud
Man who used AI bots to out-stream Taylor Swift is jailed for fraud
Hannah Furnell Wed, October 7, 2026 at 4:32 PM UTC
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A man who out-streamed Taylor Swift using AI songs and bots has been jailed -Credit:Reach Publishing Services Limited
A man, who out-streamed Taylor Swift using thousands of AI-generated songs and automated accounts, has been jailed after fraudulently earning millions in royalty fraud.
At the height of the scheme in April 2023, Michael Smith, from North Carolina, used a massive catalog of AI-generated songs and thousands of bots to manipulate music streams, fraudulently earning more than $8 million in royalties from YouTube Music family-plan streams. Swift, one of the biggest music stars, generated 9.3 million streams for her entire catalogue in the same category, putting Smith's artificial activity at about 8.7 times Swift's total.
Now, Smith has been sentenced to 18 months in prison after the scheme. He was also ordered to give up the $8.09 million and serve two years of supervised release. This comes after tech experts warned that humanity will soon be wiped out by AI robots.
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Smith's AI scheme, which operated from 2017 to 2024, relied on three things: thousands of fake streaming accounts, software that continuously played songs, and a massive music catalogue that was streamed without making any single track appear unusually popular.
Smith used fake email accounts and fraudulently obtained debit cards to create thousands of bot accounts. They then worked simultaneously to earn funds, with as many as 10,000 accounts operating at once at some points. Smith reduced his risk of being detected by then spreading automated streams across thousands of songs.
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Michael Smith's AI scheme operated from 2017 to 2024 -Credit:mikesmithinc/Instagram
To make that massive catalog, Smith deployed the use of AI. The generated songs were then streamed billions of times by the bot accounts. Streaming royalties are distributed from a pool of money, meaning artificial listening can change how that pool is distributed among rights holders.
According to the IB Times, the US Justice Department said fake streams divert money from artists whose music was actually played by listeners.
So, the Smith case doesn't exactly center around the dispute over whether AI-generated music should be allowed on streaming services. The criminal conduct involved creating false accounts and artificial listening activity to earn royalties.
IFPI's 2026 Global Music Report explains why the issue goes beyond Smith's case. IB Times writes, "Deezer reported receiving more than 60,000 fully AI-generated tracks every day in January 2026, while saying up to 85% of streams on AI-generated music on its service were fraudulent in 2025."
Michael Smith has been sentenced to 18 months in prison after his AI scheme -Credit:mikesmithinc/Instagram
The outlet further reported, "IFPI said generative AI has industrialised artificial content and artificial listening, making large-scale fraud cheaper and faster while potentially making it harder to detect."
IFPI has called for stronger identity verification, content verification, detection systems, and information-sharing between streaming platforms and distributors.
Standing before U.S. District Judge John G. Koeltl, Smith pleaded guilty on March 19, 2026, to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He was sentenced on October 6, 2026. His case proves there's a challenge in distinguishing real AI-generated content from fake audiences designed to earn royalties.
Meanwhile, Swift earns hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties, with her career earnings from streaming alone now surpassing $500 million on Spotify.
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
