As the marginal cost of music creation approaches zero, what becomes the next true scarcity in the industry? Harvard Business School students recently had the opportunity to explore this question firsthand with Snow Jiang (Snow.J), Founder and CEO of Cheerful Music and HBS alumna. Following her first appearance at HBS in Boston earlier this year, Snow was invited to the Harvard Business School China Classroom in Chengdu, joining as a featured case-study guest to discuss the future of music in the age of artificial intelligence.
Cheerful Music, the first Chinese music company selected as an official HBS teaching case, presented a session titled “The AI Future of the Music Industry.” Snow shared the company’s strategic logic, long-term vision, and structural approach to navigating rapid technological change, offering students a rare look into a music company thriving amid AI-driven disruption.
With AI tools like Suno, more than seven million new songs are generated globally every day. Against this backdrop, Snow offered a sobering insight: “When music can be generated infinitely, music itself is no longer scarce. What becomes truly scarce is the ability to ensure a song is actually heard.” She emphasized that while AI can automate sound creation, it cannot replace human insight into audience emotion, strategic understanding of short-form video ecosystems, or the creative intuition necessary to break through content noise. These human-led capabilities remain at the heart of Cheerful Music’s ability to produce culturally resonant hits year after year.
From “Xiang Si Yao,” which sparked a global wave of interest in classical-inspired aesthetics on short-form platforms and amassed over 50 billion views, to “Luo Le Bai,” a recent viral hit accompanied by a user-driven dance challenge, Cheerful Music has proven that strategic human creativity remains a competitive edge—even in an era of oversupply. During the discussion, a student asked about rising promotional costs in the face of intensifying competition for attention. Snow replied candidly: “To achieve the same level of impact today, promotion costs are roughly four to five times higher than they were five years ago.” Another student noted, “The transferable value of this business model isn’t music itself. Music is simply the surface. At its core, the model brings together people who share similar lifestyles or emotional resonance through a powerful distribution medium.” This observation echoed Cheerful Music’s philosophy: while AI can generate sound, lasting value is created through human connection.
Cheerful Music is developing a proprietary AI music vertical model, addressing copyright and licensing concerns that often limit AI tools. By enabling modular decomposition and recombination of melody, arrangement, and vocals, the company ensures that all generated content is legally secure and commercially viable—a structural solution for sustainable AI music growth. Snow also highlighted the company’s evolving virtual artist strategy. Rather than replacing human performers, virtual artists serve as visual carriers of music, amplifying discovery and memorability by connecting auditory and visual experiences. In this framework, virtual artists are long-term creative assets within an AI-enabled ecosystem.
Cheerful Music’s global ambitions were a key discussion point. Students were curious why London was chosen as the company’s first overseas market. Snow explained using the CAGE framework (Cultural, Administrative, Geographic, Economic distance), citing the UK’s rich musical heritage, global language reach, and cultural openness as factors that make it an ideal bridge market for cross-cultural collaboration. In 2025, Cheerful Music’s international momentum continued to grow. The company entered a strategic partnership with Sony Music for distribution and content development, hosted its first international songwriting camps in Chengdu and Shenzhen, and appeared at The Great Escape in the UK and Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE), becoming the only Chinese music company to host an independent stage. Looking ahead, the company will showcase at SXSW 2026, facilitating cross-market collaborations and engaging with global industry leaders on emerging models of creativity, technology, and distribution.
From traditional copyright operations to AI-driven ecosystems, and from local hit-making to global collaboration, Snow’s HBS session highlighted how music companies can operate as connectors in the AI era. In a world of infinite content, relevance is no longer defined by origin—it is defined by the ability to create meaningful connections, shared resonance, and sustainable creative value.
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