Uninstall Spotify โข Boycott Spotify
From Pirated MP3s to AI War: The Rise of Daniel Ek and Spotifyโs Dark Side
Most people see Spotify as just musicโyour playlist, your road trip, your daily background. But behind the app is a history of piracy roots, low pay for artists, and Daniel Ek earning billions that now flow into AI weapons.
๐ง Spotify Started With Piracy (2006โ2008)
- 2006 โ Daniel Ek was 23 when he co-founded Spotify in Sweden with Martin Lorentzon.
- He grew up in the piracy generation, also downloading MP3s illegally.
- His idea: โYou canโt stop piracy. Make something easier than piracy.โ
- 2008 โ Spotify launched. Users no longer owned musicโonce you stop paying, everything is gone.
๐ต One Stream, Almost No Pay
- Artists earn around โฌ0.003 ($0.0032 / โฑ0.18) per stream, far lower than Apple Music.
- 2024 โ Spotify set a 1,000-stream rule: songs under 1K plays in a year earn nothing.
- 2019 โ Ek claimed making music now costs โclose to zero,โ ignoring real expenses like instruments, software, and studio time.
- 2023โ2025 โ Spotify playlists were filled with simple tracks under fake names and later AI-generated songs, paying less to real musicians.
โ Scandals and Issues
- Spotify once tried to access user photos and contacts for playlists and social features, raising privacy concerns until it scaled back.
- 2022 โ Spotify refused to drop Joe Rogan after COVID-19 misinformation, even as artists like Neil Young left in protest.
- 2023 โ Spotify cut 1,500 jobs while Ek sold shares and made millions.
- 2025 โ UK age-check rule: users had to provide facial scans or IDs for explicit content, sparking privacy backlash and VPN use.
- Ek sold $340M (โฑ18.8B) worth of Spotify stock, while artists still struggle.
๐ฃ From Music Money to Military Tech
- 2025 โ Ek invested โฌ600M (~$693M / โฑ38B) into Helsing, an AI military company where he is Chairman.
- Helsing builds AI-powered defense systems.
๐ถ Indie Exodus from Spotify (2025)
A growing wave of indie artists are leaving Spotify over Ekโs investment in military AI.
- Deerhoof said: โWe donโt want our music killing people.โ
- Xiu Xiu called Spotify a โgarbage hole violent armageddon portal.โ
- King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard shouted โFuck Spotifyโ and pulled their entire catalog.
- Godspeed You! Black Emperor also removed their music from streaming platforms, including Spotify.
- Hotline TNT joined the boycott in August 2025.
- Other artists and labels like Kalahari Oyster Cult, David Bridie, Leah Senior, Skee Mask, and Charlie Waldren (Poolroom) pulled their tracks too.
- The group UMAW called Ekโs move โwarmongering.โ
๐ง The Money Trail
Your playlist โ Spotify profit โ Daniel Ek โ AI weapons.
Sources: Bloomberg, Financial Times, Forbes, Billboard, Music Business Worldwide, TechCrunch, BBC, NY Times, The Guardian, Pitchfork, The Fader, SF Chronicle, News.com.au, Indian Express.
Note: This article only connects public facts. The picture is yours to see.
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