<p>Michael Smith, a 54-year-old man from North Carolina, was sentenced to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to using artificial intelligence to generate songs as part of a scheme that defrauded music streaming platforms of millions of dollars.</p><p>The US Department of Justice announced in a press release on October 7, 2026, that Smith is the first individual in the United States to be criminally charged with AI-assisted streaming fraud.</p><p>Smith was charged in 2024 and managed to operate the fraudulent scheme for seven years without being detected.</p>
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North Carolina Man Sentenced for AI-Assisted Music Streaming Fraud
Michael Smith, a 54-year-old from North Carolina, has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for using AI-generated songs to commit fraud against music streaming platforms. He is noted as the first person in the U.S. to be charged with AI-assisted streaming fraud, having run the scheme undetected for seven years.
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Fraudster jailed for using 10K bots and AI songs to outstream Taylor Swift
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North Carolina Man Sentenced for AI-Assisted Music Streaming Fraud