Major Labels Urge Charts to Bar Unauthorised AI Music

Overview

• A coalition of nearly a dozen record companies, including Universal, Sony and Warner, announced guidelines on Wednesday asking official chart compilers to admit AI-linked tracks only when AI use is properly authorised, the recording is substantially human-made, and there is no evidence of streaming or chart manipulation.
• The rules would not ban all AI assistance but would require platforms to show if a track used generative AI and would keep mainly human-created songs eligible for charts while excluding wholly synthetic or unauthorised works.
• Labels say many generative-AI tools were trained on artists' recordings without permission and that much AI-upload activity has been tied to schemes that boost streams, creating both copyright and chart-integrity concerns.
• Platforms and industry groups are already taking varied steps — Spotify added artist verification badges, Tidal excluded AI tracks from royalties, Deezer detects and tags AI uploads — but enforcement questions remain about reliably proving lawful AI use and spotting fraud.
• The labels' push builds on past litigation and deals with AI developers and on IFPI-backed principles that it will roll out to some official charts, a move that could reshape which songs receive industry recognition and affect how artists and platforms handle AI tools.