Spotify Faces Artist Exodus Over CEO’s Military AI Investments and Ethical Backlash

In 2025, a growing boycott of Spotify by artists worldwide has gained momentum due to CEO Daniel Ek’s significant investments in military artificial intelligence (AI) technology. Ek’s private investment firm, Prima Materia, committed over €600 million (approximately $700 million) to Helsing, a German defense startup developing AI-powered strike drones, autonomous fighter aircraft, and other advanced military systems actively deployed in conflicts like the war in Ukraine. Ek serves as chairman of Helsing, linking the streaming giant’s leadership directly to the defense industry, stirring widespread ethical objections among musicians.business-humanrights+2​

High-profile acts leading this boycott include Sylvan Esso, Massive Attack, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Deerhoof, Xiu Xiu, and numerous independent artists globally. Sylvan Esso removed their entire catalog as a principled refusal to financially support what they called “war machines”. Massive Attack cited the moral burden of having their fans' money support “lethal, dystopian technologies” and called for Spotify’s global removal of their music. Similarly, King Gizzard withdrew a vast discography, urging fans to support alternative platforms like Bandcamp which offer better artist compensation and ethical alignment.rollingstone​

Beyond concerns about militarization, this movement underscores longstanding grievances about Spotify’s low artist royalties, opaque algorithms, and increasing reliance on AI-driven content moderation and promotion. Some musicians and activists argue Spotify’s business model dehumanizes music, favoring passive consumption and flooding listeners with overwhelming choices, diluting genuine artistic engagement. Seattle-based musician collectives, including jazz and indie artists, have publicly pledged to remove their music in protest against these practices while spotlighting the platform’s promotion of AI-generated “ghost artists,” which they see as a cultural and economic threat to living musicians.knkx+1​

The boycott is both an ethical stance and a broader industry reckoning, with musicians using their withdrawals to advocate for fairer compensation and corporate responsibility. Several artists have launched independent labels or alternative streaming initiatives to foster direct relationships with fans and regain control over their work, as Sylvan Esso did with Psychic Hotline, describing their departure as a “hopeful and aggressive” push against the status quo.themusicnetwork+1​

Amid escalating artist and investor pressure, Spotify announced that Ek will step down as CEO effective January 2026, with co-presidents Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström taking over as co-CEOs. Ek will remain as executive chairman. This leadership change followed a notable drop in Spotify’s stock value, reflecting market unease.washingtonpost+1​

In sum, the Spotify artist boycott highlights a critical juncture at the crossroads of technology, ethics, and creative labor. It demonstrates the growing influence artists can wield to challenge practices they find unacceptable, from low royalties and algorithmic exploitation to their platform’s entanglement with controversial military technologies. The boycott serves as a call to rethink the future of music streaming toward models that respect creators’ values and rights while fostering genuine artistic engagement.aimagazine+5​