Spotify held its second quarter earnings call on Tuesday. During the call, executives gave an update on a product that lets fans use AI to make covers and remixes of songs.
The company said Merlin has joined the project. Merlin works as a licensing partner for independent labels and distributors.
Merlin already worked with Universal Music Group on the effort before this update. Now, Merlin's network adds more than 30,000 labels to the pool of available music.
How the Tool Works
The product lets fans create covers and remixes of songs. Artists must agree to take part before their music can be used this way.
Spotify co-CEO Gustav Söderström spoke about the project on the call. He said the tool is built around "real artists, not fake artists."
Co-CEO Alex Norström explained the process further. He said artists must consent to add their work, and in return they get credit and payment for use.
Norström called it the first legal way for artists to take part in the growing AI music trend. He said the company wanted to give artists a way to benefit from AI tools rather than lose out to them.
AI Music on Streaming Platforms
AI generated music has grown fast on streaming services. Music streamer Deezer reported that more than half of daily track uploads are now made with AI.
That number was only 10% in January 2025. The jump shows how quickly AI tools have spread across the music industry.
Spotify has framed its product as different from other AI music tools. Many other AI music startups create fully artificial songs without real artist involvement.
Spotify said a research preview of the covers and remix tool will go out to a small group of users first. The company did not give a launch date for this preview.
The company also said artists will not need a full catalog of songs to take part. This could let more artists join the project early on.
The tool will launch as a paid add on. Spotify said this creates a new way for artists to earn money from their music.
Söderström closed his comments by saying the product is unique to Spotify. He said other forms of AI generated music will exist with or without the company, but this specific tool depends on Spotify's work with labels and artists.
He added that the goal is to let existing artists take part in AI music trends on their own terms. Spotify has not shared a specific timeline for a full public release.
