{"id":799979,"date":"2026-08-02T21:38:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-02T21:38:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/799979\/"},"modified":"2026-08-02T21:38:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-02T21:38:10","slug":"silicon-valley-couple-accused-of-stealing-ai-music-technology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/799979\/","title":{"rendered":"Silicon Valley couple accused of stealing AI music technology"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Grammy-winning artist and his mogul music manager claim they were swindled out of millions by a wealthy Silicon Valley power couple who stole their AI software idea<\/a> in an elaborate scheme, an explosive lawsuit claims.<\/p>\n

Songwriter and music producer Warren \u201cOak\u201d Felder, who has written songs for Mariah Carey<\/a> and Britany Spears<\/a>, and his industry veteran partner Lucas Keller are suing tech husband and wife powerhouses Walter and Samia De Brouwer, accusing them of stealing their music copyright software.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The court papers filed in Los Angeles set up a dramatic battle between the uber-rich Bay Area<\/a> entrepreneurs and Southern California artists who claim they\u2019ve been robbed of at least $5 million.<\/p>\n

Samia and Walter De Brouwer are accused of stealing music copyright software.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Instagram\/@sam_dbdb<\/p>\n

Songwriter and music producer Oak Felder filed the suit in Los Angeles. Getty Images for BMI<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSign up for the California Morning Report newsletter\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCalifornia’s top news, sports and entertainment delivered to your inbox every day.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Music industry veteran Lucas Keller is also part of the suit against the De Brouwers. Getty Images for Variety<\/p>\n

\u201cUnscrupulous Silicon Valley scammers Walter and Samia De Brouwer put money before morals, exploiting the ideas and labor of a prolific songwriter and music producer,\u201d the court papers state.<\/p>\n

Keller, who built global talent management company Milk and Honey Music + Sports, which boasts Kansas City Chiefs Travis Kelce<\/a> as a client, met the De Brouwers around 2016 and they \u201cbecame close family friends,\u201d according to the suit.<\/p>\n

Keller built global talent management company that includes Kansas City Chief Travis Kelce as a client. Getty Images<\/p>\n

The 25-year music industry veteran says that in 2023 he, Felder and the De Brouwers discussed developing software to create music using AI.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Keller and Felder talked about the addition of a \u201ccopyright checker\u201d so that the software would flag copyrighted chords,\u201d the papers claim.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnscrupulous Silicon Valley scammers Walter and Samia De Brouwer put money before morals,\u201d the filing says. Instagram\/@sam_dbdb<\/p>\n

\u201cThe De Brouwers were enamored with the concept and wanted to be involved,\u201d the lawsuit claims.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The tech couple agreed that if the two artists wrote the software, including the so-called copyright checker, the Brouwers would pay Keller and Felder in stock options from their company Snowcrash, the lawsuit claims.<\/p>\n

Snowcrash awarded Keller and Felder 345,000 shares each to be vested between November 2023 and November 2028 on Carta.com<\/a>, and Keller and Felder each accepted, the papers say.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe De Brouwers were enamored with the concept and wanted to be involved,\u201d the lawsuit claims.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Shortly afterward, the De Brouwers \u201cbusied themselves with their fraudulent scheme\u201d when they \u201ccoerced\u201d Felder and Keller to assign the software patent to Snowcrash, according to the lawsuit.<\/p>\n

The De Brouwers then formed a new company, Sound Patrol, and used that company to purchase virtually all of Snowcrash\u2019s assets, including the patent, the papers read.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The De Brouwers agreed that if Keller and Felder wrote the software, they would pay the two artists in stock options.<\/p>\n

The move \u201cdrove the value of Felder and Keller\u2019s stock options six feet under,\u201d and the De Brouwers ended up \u201clanding a highly lucrative licensing deal with Universal Music Group and Sony Music\u201d with Sound Patrol the lawsuit claims.<\/p>\n

\u201cSound Patrol has not paid a penny to Keller or Felder for their work developing the software or for the patent,\u201d the lawsuit claims.<\/p>\n

The duo say they\u2019re owed in excess of $5 million and are seeking damages and the right to the software patent.<\/p>\n

Songwriter and producer Felder has sold over 100 million records. Sportsfile via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Walter De Brouwer is listed as a co-founder with Hollywood mogul Michael Ovitz (pictured) on the Sound Patrol website. ASSOCIATED PRESS<\/p>\n

The De Brouwers are tech giants, having founded the AI company Doc.ai<\/a> in 2016, which was then acquired by digital health company Sharecare, according to the company\u2019s website.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Walter De Brouwer is listed as a co-founder along with Hollywood mogul Michael Ovitz<\/a> on the Sound Patrol website.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith Michael Ovitz as Co-Founder, SoundPatrol gained direct access to the global entertainment industry, accelerating its deployment across music, sports, streaming, and beyond,\u201d the website says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sound Patrol is also listed in the lawsuit as a defendant. <\/p>\n

Both the De Brouwers and Sound Patrol were contacted for comment by The California Post.<\/p>\n

Keller represents over 70 top singers and songwriters and Felder has sold over 100 million records, the papers say.<\/p>\n

Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters <\/p>\n

California Post News: Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, TikTok<\/a>, X<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, WhatsApp<\/a>, LinkedIn<\/a>
California Post Sports Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, TikTok<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, X<\/a>
California Post Opinion<\/a>
California Post Newsletters: Sign up here!<\/a>
California Post App: Download here!<\/a>
Home delivery: Sign up here!<\/a>
<\/a>Page Six Hollywood: Sign up here!<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t