Spotify Pledges AI Tools That ‘Will Not Replace Human Artistry’ as It Partners With Major Labels

DailyTrend

Oct 16, 2025 - 10:00

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Spotify Pledges AI Tools That ‘Will Not Replace Human Artistry’ as It Partners With Major Labels

Spotify is partnering with Sony Music Group, Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, Merlin and Believe on “artist-first” AI music tools, according to a blog post from Spotify. Little is known about what generative AI models will come out of this partnership but the post notes that the company has “already begun work on the first product” and that these forthcoming AI products will “empower the artists and songwriters they represent and connect them with the fans who support them.”

As part of the announcement, Spotify is touting four principles that it will follow with its AI models to “put artists and songwriters” first.

It reads as follows:

Partnerships with record labels, distributors, and music publishers: We’ll develop new products for artists and fans through upfront agreements, not by asking for forgiveness later.
Choice in participation: We recognize there’s a wide range of views on use of generative music tools within the artistic community. Therefore, artists and rightsholders will choose if and how to participate to ensure the use of AI tools aligns with the values of the people behind the music.
Fair compensation and new revenue: We will build products that create wholly new revenue streams for rightsholders, artists, and songwriters, ensuring they are properly compensated for uses of their work and transparently credited for their contributions.
Artist-fan connection: AI tools we develop will not replace human artistry. They will give artists new ways to be creative and connect with fans. We will leverage our role as the place where more than 700 million people already come to listen to music every month to ensure that generative AI deepens artist-fan connections.

To create these forthcoming models, Spotify says in its blog post that it has started building a state-of-the-art generative AI research lab and product team.

The news comes just weeks after Spotify announced that it was strengthening its policies on negative use cases of AI-generated music. This includes updates to its spam, impersonation and content mismatch policies, among others. The streaming service also recently announced an integration with ChatGPT, allowing users to better personalize their song and podcast recommendations.

See below for comments from top music industry executives on the new agreement:

Alex Norström, co-president and chief business officer at Spotify: “Technology should always serve artists, not the other way around. Our focus at Spotify is making sure innovation supports artists by protecting their rights, respecting their creative choices, and creating new ways for fans to discover and enjoy the music they love.”

Gustav Söderström, co-president and chief product and technology officer at Spotify: “AI is the most consequential technology shift since the smartphone, and it’s already reshaping how music is created and experienced. At Spotify, we want to build this future hand in hand with the music industry, guided by clear principles and deep respect for creators, just as we did in the days of piracy. Our company brings deep research expertise to this opportunity and we’re actively growing our AI team and capabilities to drive the continued growth of the entire music ecosystem.”

Rob Stringer, chairman of Sony Music Group: “We are pleased to be collaborating with Spotify to develop responsible generative AI offerings that broaden opportunities for artists and songwriters, whilst enhancing the music experience for fans. This is an acknowledgement that direct licensing in advance of launching new products is the only appropriate way to build them and demonstrates how a properly functioning market benefits everyone in the ecosystem and fuels innovation. We appreciate and applaud Spotify’s leadership at this critical period.”

Sir Lucian Grainge, chairman & CEO of Universal Music Group: “For several years we’ve been driving initiatives with our partners to put artists at the center of the conversation about Gen AI and have struck Artist-Centric agreements that establish innovative new vehicles to unlock the opportunities presented by this revolutionary technology. I commend Daniel, Alex and Gustav on taking these critical steps forward to advance this approach. It is essential that we work with strategic partners such as Spotify to enable Gen AI products within a thriving commercial landscape in which artists, songwriters, fans, music companies and technology companies can all flourish.”

Robert Kyncl, CEO of Warner Music Group: “We’ve been consistently focused on making sure AI works for artists and songwriters, not against them. That means collaborating with partners who understand the necessity for new AI licensing deals that protect and compensate rightsholders and the creative community. We support Spotify’s thoughtful AI guardrails, and welcome the opportunity to pioneer the future together.”

Charlie Lexton, COO of Merlin: “Merlin’s approach to the use of AI in music is straightforward. We actively look for partners who respect and value copyright, respect and value artists and want to enrich, not displace, the creative community. Spotify’s principles on AI announced today demonstrate that same commitment. We are excited to work together to ensure these principles translate into products that genuinely enhance the creative and commercial eco-system – for the benefit of our independent members, their artists and their fans.”

Denis Ladegaillerie, founder and CEO of Believe: “At Believe, we have always seen two sides to AI and GenAI. On the one side is ‘responsible AI,’ focused on artist and copyright protection, guided by our four principles of consent, control, compensation, and transparency. On the other side is ‘value-creative AI,’ innovations that place artists and their careers at the center, empowering creativity, accelerating music discovery, and deepening fan engagement. After supporting Spotify’s recent initiatives to strengthen AI protections, we are now thrilled to partner with Spotify to co-develop ‘value-creative AI’ tools that will fuel artist development and unlock new creative and commercial opportunities.”