In a startling development within the digital music landscape, artificial intelligence is being exploited by fraudsters to orchestrate a sophisticated scam that drains royalties from genuine musicians. This scheme involves the mass production of AI-generated tracks, which are then streamed repeatedly by automated bots to generate illicit income from streaming services.
The Scale of the AI Music Onslaught
The sheer volume of AI music flooding platforms is staggering. According to data from Deezer, a leading French streaming service comparable to Spotify or Apple Music, an estimated 60,000 fully AI tracks are uploaded daily. This represents over a third of all new content on the site. To put this in perspective, the entire US music industry produced around 57,000 songs in 2015. Deezer projects it will receive 21 million AI tracks annually, a conservative figure given the rapid monthly growth in AI music production.
How the Fraud Operates
The fraud unfolds in two distinct phases. First, criminals utilise AI tools to create vast quantities of music effortlessly. Then, they deploy bots to stream these tracks incessantly, racking up royalties in the process. Romain Hennequin, head of research at Deezer, describes this as a method to "totally flood the music streaming services." He has developed an algorithm that detects AI music by analysing inaudible features, though the tracks themselves are not fraudulent; it's the manipulative behaviour surrounding them that constitutes the scam.
Thibault Roucou, Deezer's head of royalties, reveals that "the vast majority of the listeners of this content is in fact what we call stream manipulation or fraud." Algorithms monitoring unnatural activity suggest that up to 85% of listens on fully AI music are fraudulent, mirroring how banks detect suspicious payment patterns.
Financial Impact on Artists
This fraud has dire financial consequences for real musicians due to the royalty payment structure on streaming platforms. Artists are paid from a common pool based on their share of total streams, meaning fraudulent streams dilute the pool and reduce earnings for everyone. Alexis Lanternier, CEO of Deezer, estimates that 8 to 9% of streams are fraudulent, translating to a loss of two to three billion dollars globally for the music industry.
Human artists express outrage at this development. Folk musician Lila Tristram states, "As artists, we get such a small fraction of the money that we actually deserve... for that to just be getting cut shorter and shorter through robots... it makes my blood boil." Aidan Grant, founder of music production agency Different Sauce, warns that the industry must address this issue promptly to prevent it from spiralling out of control.
The Countermeasures and Challenges
Deezer is fighting back with automated systems to identify and block bots, preventing fraudulent tracks from generating royalties. However, Roucou acknowledges this is "an ongoing battle," with fraudsters constantly evolving their tactics. Deezer has also taken the step of labelling fully AI tracks as AI, though it remains the only major streaming service to do so. Spotify, while not labelling AI content, removed 75 million spam tracks last year, many likely AI-generated, from its catalogue of 100 million songs.
Other platforms like YouTube and Apple Music have not implemented similar labelling. YouTube requires creators to disclose realistic AI content, but enforcement varies. Apple Music did not respond to inquiries on the matter.
The Human Element Endures
Despite the proliferation of AI music, there is a silver lining for musicians: genuine human connection still matters. Most AI tracks fail to gain meaningful traction outside of occasional viral hits or fraudulent schemes. Music that resonates with audiences typically requires promotion by individuals with authentic personal appeal, suggesting that, for now, the art form retains its human essence.
As the debate continues over how to alert consumers and protect artists, the music industry faces a critical juncture in balancing technological innovation with ethical safeguards against exploitation.
