At the beginning of the 21st century, Napster emerged as the primary platform for file sharing online—although the music industry preferred to label it as piracy. For numerous Millennials and Gen Xers, Napster symbolized rebellion, bringing digital music consumption into the limelight. Some may also recall Justin Timberlake’s representation of Napster co-founder Sean Parker in The Social Network. The brand played a crucial and contentious role in the nascent stages of the internet before being dismantled by a surge of legal actions.

Now, Napster is poised for a resurgence—but not in the manner you might anticipate.

As per a recent report from Forbes, a startup based in Florida named Infinite Reality has rebranded itself as Napster Corporation. The revelation was supposedly made during a Zoom meeting with investors earlier this month. However, the company’s official website still prominently showcases the Infinite Reality branding. This rebranding follows just months after Infinite Reality took over Napster, which in prior years had functioned as a subscription-based music streaming platform under different owners.

While information is still limited, Forbes indicates that the newly established Napster Corporation intends to provide “AI-driven digital experiences.” When Infinite Reality acquired Napster this year, it alluded to plans to evolve the brand into a venue for immersive 3D virtual music events—reminiscent of Fortnite’s in-game concerts.

At present, the only visible Napster-branded project on Infinite Reality’s site is “Napster Spaces,” a service claiming to leverage AI to assist businesses in crafting more engaging websites.

The entire venture remains cloaked in jargon and uncertainty. Forbes observed that Infinite Reality had previously promoted itself as a metaverse enterprise, which may elucidate the ambiguous direction. What is evident is that the new Napster Corporation shares little in common with the original peer-to-peer file-sharing platform—apart from the name. Nevertheless, Napster is undoubtedly a more recognizable name than Infinite Reality.

Let’s just hope Metallica remains unaware of this revival.