[Apple Music Sets Mandate for AI‑Generated Music Labels This Year]
Apple Music will add labels to AI‑generated music later this year.
Earlier this year, the streaming platform announced it would inform users when they were playing music produced with artificial intelligence. Since then, the plan has not materialised, as several competitors have rolled out comparable measures.
Now Apple Music has confirmed that its “Made With AI” label will be applied to tracks created using the technology later this year. A note to industry partners explained that record labels and distributors must tag songs in which a material portion of the content was generated by AI, according to Variety.
The new labeling system follows the AI Transparency Tagging introduced in March, which classifies tracks in the service’s database depending on the involvement of AI.
“As we introduce Made With AI Labels, content providers will be essential partners,” Apple Music stated. “They are best placed to understand how their material was created and to apply appropriate AI transparency tags.”
The move mirrors actions taken by other music platforms. At the start of the year, Bandcamp prohibited all AI‑generated songs, declaring it would remove any music suspected of being AI‑produced. Just last week, Beatport adopted a similar stance, promising “greater transparency” while safeguarding human creativity.
Additionally, TIDAL disclosed a policy forbidding royalty payments to content wholly composed by artificial intelligence. Meanwhile, Spotify is rolling out a new labelling framework that lets listeners instantly recognise AI‑assisted artistry. On Deezer, researchers reported that AI‑generated tracks now outnumber human releases by more than half.
A recent study revealed that AI was detectable in roughly 40 % of music uploaded worldwide earlier this month. Earlier findings indicated that nearly 40 % of global releases contained AI elements, and a July analysis showed a spike after March’s classification effort.
In March, figures from the UK music industry responded to new government legislation preventing AI firms from using existing works without permission. They emphasized that further measures were needed beyond initial copyright protections.
Prominent artists such as Paul McCartney, Kate Bush, Dua Lipa and Elton John once led campaigns urging the government to safeguard creative works against unauthorized AI copying, after the administration proposed policies permitting AI to use copyrighted material without consent.
In February, Google granted its virtual assistant Gemini the capability to compose AI‑generated music.
A 2025 survey found that 97 % of respondents could not distinguish genuine audio from AI‑produced tracks, while the prior year warned that up to a quarter of musicians could see a significant drop in income from AI within the next four years.
Other headlines include controversy over artist rights. Boy George challenged Bandcamp for deleting his pro‑Israel track “We Will Dance Again”, noting it was removed under an Acceptable Use & Modation Policy that bars music created entirely by AI. Similarly, Empire of the Sun vocalist Luke Steele admitted AI assists him creatively, whereas Queen frontman Brian May suggested the band did not rely on AI at all.
