Tidal Will Flag Fully AI-Generated Music and Bar It From Earning Royalties

Tidal is the latest major streaming platform to address the rise of AI-generated music, announcing a new policy that will tag fully AI-generated tracks and withhold royalties from them. Starting July 15, songs determined to be 100% AI-generated will receive an identifying icon on the platform, but they will no longer generate payments for their creators. The policy applies to Tidal Upload, the service's independent artist distribution program, according to balleralert.com.

balleralert.comTidal to Stop Paying Royalties on Fully AI-Generated Songs Starting July 15

"Tidal says it will not attribute royalties to wholly AI-generated music." This move stops short of an outright ban on such content, but it creates a clear financial disincentive for flooding the platform with machine-made tracks. The Verge reported that Tidal will begin labeling those songs with an icon to inform listeners about their origin.

The VergeTidal to label AI-generated music and withhold royalties, but won't ban it

"The platform is not banning AI-generated content outright but is taking steps to protect human artists and inform listeners." The policy reflects a growing tension in streaming: platforms want to welcome new creative tools while preserving the economic model for human musicians.

Stereogum noted that Tidal's approach mirrors Apple Music's use of badges to identify AI-generated music, but goes further by blocking monetization. Bandcamp, by contrast, has banned AI-generated material entirely. Tidal's statement, as reported by Stereogum, emphasized that "AI's takeover of the music industry is not inevitable if proactive steps are taken to monitor and control it." The new rules signal that streaming services are beginning to draw a line between human creative labor and machine output, with potential ripple effects for how artists are compensated in an increasingly automated landscape.

StereogumTidal to Label AI-Generated Music and Block Its Monetization