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As AI-generated music floods streaming platforms, Deezer has introduced what it claims is the world’s first AI tagging system to identify and isolate fully machine-made tracks. The move comes amid growing concern over the surge of low-quality, algorithmically generated content, much of it uploaded en masse to exploit streaming payouts. Deezer revealed in April that over 20,000 AI tracks are uploaded daily, double the number reported just months earlier. The company also says that up to 70% of streams on fully AI-generated tracks are fraudulent, with the vast majority uploaded by exploiters rather than artists.
CEO Alexis Lanternier has framed the system as a tool for transparency, allowing listeners to see which albums contain AI material while excluding such tracks from editorial and algorithmic recommendations. The company insists these changes will “safeguard” artist royalties and improve user experience, but also admits that only 0.5% of total streams on its platform are from fully AI-generated songs, raising questions about whether the real impact is more symbolic than structural.
Deezer has taken a hardline stance before, deleting 26 million tracks deemed “useless” and pioneering an artist-centric model with Universal Music Group. Still, critics argue that efforts to flag AI content gloss over the deeper issue: a broken royalty model that allows manipulation to flourish in the first place.
As AI blurs the line between novelty and noise, streaming platforms face a growing imperative not only to flag their content, but to seriously consider how value is measured in the digital music economy.
