Anthropic, an artificial intelligence startup, persuaded a federal judge in California on Tuesday to dismiss a preliminary motion to prohibit it from training its AI-powered chatbot Claude using lyrics that belonged to Universal Music Group and other music publishers.
TakeAway Points:
- Artificial intelligence company Anthropic convinced a California federal judge on Tuesday to reject a preliminary bid to block it from using lyrics owned by Universal Music Group and other music publishers to train its AI-powered chatbot Claude.
- U.S. District Judge Eumi Lee rejected the publishers’ argument that Anthropic’s use of their lyrics caused them irreparable harm by diminishing their licensing market.
- Dell Technologies headcount fell by 10% in fiscal 2025, and it reaffirmed its commitment to diversity and inclusion.
Anthropic and music publishers
U.S. District Judge Eumi Lee said that the publishers’ request was too broad and that they failed to show Anthropic’s conduct caused them “irreparable harm.”
The publishers said in a statement that they “remain very confident in our case against Anthropic more broadly.” An Anthropic spokesperson said the company was pleased that the court did not grant the publishers’ “disruptive and amorphous request.”
Music publishers UMG, Concord and ABKCO sued Anthropic in 2023, alleging that it infringed their copyrights in lyrics from at least 500 songs by musicians including Beyoncé, the Rolling Stones and the Beach Boys.
The publishers claimed Anthropic used the lyrics without permission to train Claude to respond to human prompts.
The lawsuit is one of several arguing that copyrighted works by authors, news outlets, visual artists and others have been misused without consent or payment to develop AI products.
Tech companies including OpenAI, Microsoft and Meta Platforms have said that their systems make “fair use” of copyrighted material under U.S. copyright law by studying it to learn to create new, transformative content.
Fair use is likely to be the determinative question in the lawsuits, though Lee’s opinion did not specifically address the issue.
Lee rejected the publishers’ argument that Anthropic’s use of their lyrics caused them irreparable harm by diminishing their licensing market.
“Publishers are essentially asking the Court to define the contours of a licensing market for AI training where the threshold question of fair use remains unsettled,” Lee said.
Dell’s workforce drops 10% in fiscal 2025
Dell Technologies, maker of AI servers, announced on Tuesday that its workforce had decreased by 10% in fiscal 2025 and that it was reaffirming its commitment to diversity and inclusion.
The company in its annual report said it had about 108,000 employees as of January 31, down from about 120,000 a year earlier, as it continued to take measures to reduce costs, including limiting external hiring and employee reorganizations.
The company also retained the language on diversity and inclusion. “We are committed to equal employment opportunity and continuing to implement inclusive policies that enable Dell Technologies to achieve these goals.”
President Donald Trump has called diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives discriminatory and suggested the Department of Justice could investigate if such efforts violate the law.
Companies including Meta and Alphabet have dropped DEI initiatives.
Dell reported a decline of about 5% in its workforce in fiscal year 2024.
In February, the company forecast a decline in its adjusted gross margin rate for fiscal year 2026, hit by higher costs to build AI servers in a fiercely competitive market.
