Spotify Expands AI Music Project With Merlin Licensing Partnership

Spotify has expanded its upcoming AI-powered music project by adding Merlin, a licensing partner representing more than 30,000 independent labels and distributors, to its growing list of participants. The announcement was made during the company’s second-quarter earnings call, where executives also provided new details about the planned product.

Merlin joins Universal Music Group (UMG), which was previously announced as a partner in the initiative. The new service will allow fans to create AI-generated covers and remixes using music from artists who choose to participate, with Spotify emphasising that the feature will operate only with artists’ consent.

Company executives positioned the product as an alternative to AI music platforms that generate entirely synthetic songs. Instead, Spotify said the project is designed to help fans creatively interact with existing artists’ work while ensuring artists remain involved in the process.

Consent and compensation at the centre

Co-CEO Gustav Söderström told investors that the product focuses on “real artists, not fake artists.” Co-CEO Alex Norström said participating artists will voluntarily include their music in the catalogue, receive proper attribution and be compensated when their work is used through the platform.

According to Norström, Spotify sees the service as the first legal way for artists and fans to participate together in the growing use of AI for interactive music creation. The company previously said the feature will launch as a paid add-on, creating an additional revenue stream for participating artists.

Spotify also said the initial release will begin as a research preview available only to a limited group of users. The company added that the product does not require access to a complete music catalogue before launch but did not announce a release date.

AI music continues to grow.

The announcement comes as AI-generated music continues to increase across streaming platforms. Deezer recently reported that more than half of all tracks uploaded daily are now generated using artificial intelligence, compared with about 10% in January 2025.

Söderström said Spotify believes its remix and covers platform occupies a unique position because it depends on licensed catalogues and artist participation rather than fully AI-generated music. He added that while generative AI music will continue to develop across the industry, Spotify’s approach is intended to give established artists a direct role in that evolution.