Music industry groups propose two labels for AI-made recordings

In short: Major music industry groups are promoting a voluntary two-label system to show when a sound recording was made with artificial intelligence.

What happened

A coalition of music groups, including the Recording Academy (which runs the Grammy Awards), the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), IFPI, and SAG-AFTRA, has introduced a proposed labeling standard for sound recordings.

The idea is to use two simple icons on music services and through distributors, so listeners can quickly see how artificial intelligence was used in the audio. Think of it like a nutrition label, but for how a track was made.

One label is “AI-generated.” It uses a white, capital “AI” on a black background. It is meant for tracks where generative AI (software that can create new audio from prompts, like typed instructions) made all or most of the actual recording, such as the lead vocals, key instruments, or even the whole track.

The second label is “AI-assisted.” It uses a black, lowercase “ai” on a white background. It is meant for music that is mostly created by humans, but where generative AI helped with some expressive parts, like background textures or certain sounds.

The labels are intentionally narrow. They only cover the sound recording itself, not lyrics, songwriting, music videos, or cover art. Adoption is voluntary, not a legal requirement.

Why it matters

More music is being made with AI, and it is not always obvious to listeners what they are hearing. Clear labels could reduce confusion and set shared expectations, while Grammy eligibility rules still focus on meaningful human authorship and only humans can receive awards.

Source: NYTimes