The music industry is building the tech to hunt down AI songs
The music industry is building the tech to hunt down AI songs
The music industry is developing technology to track down AI-generated songs that are being shared online.
A convincing AI-generated duet between Drake and The Weeknd, “Heart on My Sleeve”, went viral in 2023 without anyone knowing its origin.
Detection systems are being embedded across the music pipeline to identify AI-generated content early, tag it with metadata, and govern its distribution.
The goal is not just to catch synthetic content after the fact, but to prevent it from spreading in the first place by building infrastructure that works from training through distribution.
Industry experts believe that failing to develop this technology would be like “chasing your tail” and wouldn’t scale, highlighting the need for proactive measures to address AI-generated music.
The music industry’s nightmare came true in 2023, and it sounded a lot like Drake.
“Heart on My Sleeve,” a convincingly fake duet between Drake and The Weeknd, racked up millions of streams before anyone could explain who made it or where it came from. The track didn’t just go viral – it broke the illusion that anyone was in control.
In the scramble to respond, a new category of infrastructure is quietly taking shape that’s built not to stop generative music outright, but to make it traceable. Detection systems are being embedded across the entire music pipeline: in the tools used to train models, the platforms where songs are uploaded, the databases that license rights, and the algorithms that shape discovery. The goal isn’t just to catch synthetic content after the fact. It’s to identify it early, tag it with metadata, and govern how it moves through the system.
“If you don’t build this stuff into the infrastructure, you’re just going to be chasing your tail,” says Matt Adell, cofounder of Musical AI. “You can’t keep reacting to every new track or model – that doesn’t scale. You need infrastructure that works from training through distribution.”
Q. What happened in 2023 that raised concerns about AI-generated music?
A. A convincingly fake duet between Drake and The Weeknd, titled “Heart on My Sleeve”, went viral and broke the illusion of control over AI-generated content.
Q. Why is the music industry building tech to hunt down AI songs?
A. To make it traceable and identify synthetic content early, tag it with metadata, and govern its movement through the system.
Q. What is the goal of this new infrastructure being built by the music industry?
A. To stop generative music outright, but rather to make it traceable and manageable.
Q. Who is Matt Adell and what does he say about building tech to hunt down AI songs?
A. Matt Adell is cofounder of Musical AI, and he says that if you don’t build this stuff into the infrastructure, you’re just chasing your tail.
Q. What is the main challenge in responding to new AI-generated content?
A. The main challenge is not just catching synthetic content after the fact, but also identifying it early and scaling up efforts.
Q. Why can’t the music industry just react to every new track or model?
A. It doesn’t scale, and reacting to every new track or model would be inefficient and ineffective.
Q. What platforms are being embedded with detection systems to make AI-generated content traceable?
A. The platforms where songs are uploaded, as well as tools used to train models and databases that license rights.
Q. What is the ultimate goal of this infrastructure being built by the music industry?
A. To govern how AI-generated content moves through the system and ensure it’s handled in a responsible manner.
Q. Why is it important to build this tech into the infrastructure from the start?
A. Because if you don’t, you’ll be chasing your tail trying to catch synthetic content after it’s already been created.
Q. What does Matt Adell mean by “chasing your tail” when it comes to responding to AI-generated content?
A. It means that constantly reacting to new tracks or models would be a futile effort and wouldn’t lead to any meaningful progress in addressing the issue.
