NEW YORK, Oct. 10, 2024 – The ASCAP Lab, ASCAP’s innovation initiative, announces the cohort for the 2024 AI and the Business of Music Challenge. The ASCAP Lab Challenge brings together the society’s senior strategy, operations and legal experts; key ASCAP writer, composer and publisher members; and some of the most promising music tech entrepreneurs and early-stage startups in an effort to shape how artificial intelligence(AI) tools can benefit music creators. This year’s ASCAP Lab Challenge explored commercial solutions enabled by AI that can transform music industry workflows, business processes and data exchanges. 

To highlight the 2024 ASCAP Lab Challenge teams, VERSED: The ASCAP Podcast will debut “The ASCAP Lab Gets Down to Business with AI” on October 24. The episode will feature this year’s entrepreneurs explaining their innovations and how the industry can leverage these advances. ASCAP composer and producer Gregg Lehrman (trailers for Avatar, Inglourious Basterds) will share his experience as one of the mentors for the Challenge teams and as a startup founder himself.

Launched in 2020, the annual ASCAP Lab Challenge is an accelerator program, operated in partnership with the NYC Media Lab led by the NYU Tandon School of Engineering, that provides selected startups and university teams with mentorship and small grants to develop and expand upon their emerging technologies during the 12-week program. The ASCAP Lab works closely with each selected team to optimize its product development for the music creator community. It is one way in which the ASCAP Lab explores the intersection of technology, art and business to drive value for music creators and users. 

ASCAP Chief Strategy and Digital Officer Nick Lehman said: “ASCAP’s creator-first, future-forward commitment makes it imperative for us to embrace technology while simultaneously protecting the rights of creators. The dialogue, understanding and relationships that the ASCAP Lab Challenge creates with the music startup community enable us to drive progress for the industry and deliver on this commitment.”

The 2024 ASCAP Lab Challenge teams are:

CRESQA: An AI social media content assistant designed for songwriters and musicians that automates the process of social media strategy development and helps generate fully personalized post ideas and schedules for TikTok, Instagram, YouTube Shorts, Facebook and more. https://cresqa.com/ 

Music Tomorrow: Analytics tools that monitor and boost artists’ algorithmic performance on streaming platforms, using AI for advanced audience insights and automation that improve an artist’s content discoverability, listener engagement and team efficiency. https://www.music-tomorrow.com/ 

RoEx: AI-driven tools for multitrack mixing, mastering, audio cleanup and quality control, designed to streamline and enhance the last steps of the creative process by delivering a professional and balanced mix with ease. http://www.roexaudio.com 

SoundSafe.ai: Robust, state-of-the-art audio watermarking using AI to enhance security, reporting and the detection of real-time piracy and/or audio deepfakes. http://www.SoundSafe.ai 

Wavelets AI: Tools for artists, labels, copyright holders, content distributors and DSPs that help reduce IP infringement by detecting AI vocals in music. https://wavelets.ai/ 

This year’s ASCAP Lab Challenge program expands upon the 2023 Challenge, which focused on startups utilizing AI for making and experiencing music. The story of the 2023 Challenge is captured in an ASCAP Lab-produced documentary short “Prelude in AI Major: Crafting a Creator-First Future for AI.” The film takes an in-depth look at the 2023 Challenge teams and how they leveraged AI to build innovative tools for making and experiencing music, informed by their own backgrounds as composers and musicians. ASCAP mentors, including songwriter and composer members, shared their experiences guiding the teams in developing their technologies and exploring the copyright implications of their work. 

As part of its ongoing effort to educate ASCAP members on AI, ASCAP has hosted panels and symposia on the creative possibilities and legal challenges of the technology in Los Angeles, New York and Nashville. The New York and Nashville sessions are available on demand on the ASCAP YouTube Channel:

• “How Creators Are Unlocking the Potential of Artificial Intelligence” 
• “Navigating AI for Music Creators: Legal & Copyright Issues” 
• “Melody, Lyrics & Algorithm: Music Creators in the Age of AI” 
• “Navigating AI: Evolving Legal & Policy Frameworks”

Additional past ASCAP Lab programming available on demand includes: 

• “NFTs: What Every Music Creator Needs to Know” – Presented by the ASCAP Lab, this 2022 ASCAP Experience panel features experts CrossBorderWorks CEO Vickie Nauman, nft now CEO Matt Medved and writer/producer/artist Poo Bear explaining non-fungible tokens, how to buy NFTs and some of the best use cases for music NFTs - to create collectibles, build community, foster direct fan access and more. 
• “Music in the Metaverse: 4 Startups Shaping our New (Extended) Reality” – The metaverse is an immersive platform for creativity, community and identity, rich in potential for music creators and their fans. This ASCAP Experience panel presented by the ASCAP Lab features the 2022 Challenge teams demonstrating new ways to create and experience music, express digital identity through music, and connect music creators and fans in the metaverse.

More information on the ASCAP Lab can be found at https://www.ascap.com/ascap-lab. 

About ASCAP

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) is a membership association of more than one million songwriters, composers and music publishers, and represents some of the world’s most talented music creators. In 2023, ASCAP reported record-high financial results of $1.737 billion in revenues and $1.592 billion available in royalty distribution monies to its members. Over the last eight years, ASCAP has delivered a 7% compound annual growth rate for total revenues, and an 8% compound annual growth rate for total royalty distributions to members. Founded and governed by songwriters, composers and publishers, it is the only performing rights organization in the U.S. that operates on a not-for-profit basis. ASCAP licenses a repertory of over 20 million musical works to hundreds of thousands of businesses that use music, including streaming services, cable television, radio and satellite radio and brick and mortar businesses such as retail stores, hotels, clubs, restaurants and bars. ASCAP collects the licensing fees; identifies, matches and processes trillions of performances every year; and returns nearly 90 cents of every dollar back to its members as royalties. The ASCAP blanket license offers an efficient solution for businesses to legally perform ASCAP music while respecting the right of songwriters and composers to be paid fairly. ASCAP puts music creators first, advocating for their rights and the value of music on Capitol Hill, driving innovation that moves the industry forward, building community and providing the resources and support that creators need to succeed in their careers. Learn more and stay in touch at www.ascap.com, on X and Instagram @ASCAP and on Facebook.

About the NYC Media Lab

The NYC Media Lab connects media and technology companies with both NYU Tandon and industry affiliates to drive innovation, entrepreneurship and talent development. Our interdisciplinary community of innovators from industry and academia allows our network to gain valuable insights, explore the potential of emerging technology and address the challenges and opportunities created by the rapidly evolving digital media landscape. Learn more at engineering.nyu.edu/nyc-media-lab.

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For more information on ASCAP contact:

Mark Satlof (msatlof@shorefire.com)

Patrick Nitti (pnitti@shorefire.com)