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Apple Music Rolling Out Disclosure Tags for AI-Made Songs

Apple Music is rolling out a new metadata system called Transparency Tags, which indicates when AI has been used in the creation of music hosted on the platform.

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According to Music Business Worldwide, Apple sent a newsletter to industry partners on Wednesday to explain how it will roll out the new set of metadata.

The system covers four categories including artwork, track, composition (lyrics), and music video. Labels and distributors can begin applying the tags immediately. Apple describes the tags as optional for now, noting that if omitted, no AI is assumed.

Apple said it defers to content providers to determine what qualifies as AI-generated, and that it treats the tags similarly to genres, credits, and other existing metadata. The company describes it as a first step toward industry-wide transparency around AI-generated music.

Proper tagging of content is the first step in giving the music industry the data and tools needed to develop thoughtful policies around AI," Apple said in the newsletter, "and we believe labels and distributors must take an active role in reporting when the content they deliver is created using AI."

Apple's approach contrasts with the route taken by competitors like Deezer, which has built its own detection infrastructure to independently identify AI-generated tracks, but it's not 100% accurate all the time.

Deezer reports that it receives over 60,000 fully AI-generated tracks per day, with synthetic content now accounting for roughly 39% of all music delivered to the platform. Up to 85% of streams on AI-generated music were fraudulent in 2025, according to Deezer's data.

With Apple's tags, there isn't a visible enforcement or cross-verification process in place. The system is completely voluntary, or at least it is for now. Whether labels and distributors will actually use it remains to be seen.

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Top Rated Comments

11 weeks ago
Down with Ai slop
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
11 weeks ago
Would love a way to block any song touched by 2020+ era AI. Just remove it all completely.

I don't mind about sampling, mixing, synths, whatever. But I don't want to to listen to entire melodies which have been created by a computer.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mac Fly (film) Avatar
11 weeks ago
Write songs for decades and then see what you think about AI music. AI music is best when it's used for humorous purposes. Arnie singing out of character ('https://youtu.be/tL3t_rhrAYk'), and so forth. When the listener is aware. When it's used to try to sound legit the listener is being duped. It's no different than someone being sold a dodgy quality product or a stolen one—some might say it's even worse. AI ain't building no pathway in their garden and hitting their finger, going to bed in a bad mood and walking up inspired with a new tune. The word inspiration means filled with spirit, and AI ain't got none.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
11 weeks ago
This stance is weak as hell. I mean, it's a useful step to highlight slop, but the next one needs to be to BAN it. People should not be able to make money off streaming AI slop songs that only exists because of the rampant copyright infringement used to train the AI model in the first place. It's theft. Pure and simple.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
everybodylovesramen Avatar
11 weeks ago
that’s okay, maybe it’s time to stop renting music and paying artists instead so they can afford to not rely on the plagiarism machine that they themselves are caught inside of.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
11 weeks ago

Apple Music is rolling out a new metadata system called Transparency Tags, which indicates when AI has been used in the creation of music hosted on the platform.

MacRumors content image

According to Music Business Worldwide ('https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/apple-music-launches-ai-transparency-tags-but-only-if-labels-and-distributors-choose-to-declare-them/'), Apple sent a newsletter to industry partners on Wednesday to explain how it will roll out the new set of metadata.

The system covers four categories including artwork, track, composition (lyrics), and music video. Labels and distributors can begin applying the tags immediately. Apple describes the tags as optional ('https://help.apple.com/itc/musicspec/en.lproj/static.html') for now, noting that if omitted, no AI is assumed.

Apple said it defers to content providers to determine what qualifies as AI-generated, and that it treats the tags similarly to genres, credits, and other existing metadata. The company describes it as a first step toward industry-wide transparency around AI-generated music.
Apple's approach contrasts with the route taken by competitors like Deezer, which has built its own detection infrastructure to independently identify AI-generated tracks, but it's not 100% accurate all the time. With Apple's tags, there isn't a visible enforcement or cross-verification process in place.

Deezer reports that it receives over 60,000 fully AI-generated tracks per day ('https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/60000-ai-tracks-hit-deezer-daily-as-platform-moves-to-license-detection-tech-to-wider-music-industry/'), with synthetic content now accounting for roughly 39% of all music delivered to the platform. Up to 85% of streams on AI-generated music were fraudulent in 2025, according to Deezer's data.

Apple's system is voluntary, or at least it is for now. Whether labels and distributors will actually use it remains to be seen.

Article Link: Apple Music Rolling Out Disclosure Tags for AI-Made Songs ('https://www.macrumors.com/2026/03/05/apple-music-ai-transparency-tags/')
I hope they do the same for their audiobooks and also their PDF books. Also, could we just please simply have a filter so I don’t have to see AI generated or modified garbage
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)