The digital music landscape is undergoing a seismic shift, with artificial intelligence now responsible for creating a significant portion of the songs uploaded to streaming services every day. A startling new report from the streaming platform Deezer has revealed the sheer scale of this quiet revolution, raising urgent questions about creativity, copyright, and the future of the music industry.
The Scale of the AI Music Surge
According to Deezer's internal AI-detection systems, approximately 50,000 fully AI-generated tracks are now uploaded to streaming platforms daily. This staggering figure represents 34% of all daily music uploads, a proportion that has more than tripled since the start of the year. In January 2025, the platform identified just 10% of uploads as fully AI-generated.
The company's chief executive, Alexis Lanternier, stated that AI music is effectively "flooding music streaming". These tracks are typically created using simple written prompts, such as "country, 1990s style, male singer", demonstrating the accessibility and speed of AI music production. Deezer cautions that the true number of AI tracks is likely even higher, as its detection system does not catch every one, and this data does not include partially AI-generated music.
Listeners Can't Tell the Difference
Perhaps the most remarkable finding from the research is that the vast majority of people cannot distinguish between human-made and AI-created music. In a survey of 9,000 people across eight countries, including the UK, US, and Japan, a staggering 97% of participants were unable to correctly identify whether three sample tracks were real or AI-generated.
This technological achievement, however, is largely driven by financial motives rather than creative expression. Deezer reports that roughly 70% of these fully AI-generated tracks are what it labels as "fraudulent". A company spokesperson explained to Sky News that "the common denominator is the ambition to boost streams on specific tracks in order to siphon money from the royalty pool."
The method involves uploading an AI track and then using automated bots to listen to it repeatedly, generating minuscule royalties that accumulate. While these tracks account for only about 0.5% of all streams, the minimal effort required to produce them makes the endeavour financially worthwhile for the creators.
Industry Response and Artist Concerns
In response to this growing trend, Deezer is investing heavily in AI-detection technology and has filed two patents for systems designed to spot AI music. The platform's current strategy is not to remove these tracks entirely but to remove them from algorithmic recommendations and editorial playlists. They are also clearly marked as "AI-generated content", a measure designed to curb their ability to generate royalty revenue.
The survey also highlighted significant public unease, with over half (52%) of respondents feeling uncomfortable about not being able to differentiate between AI and human-made music. "The survey results clearly show that people care about music and want to know if they're listening to AI or human-made tracks or not," said CEO Alexis Lanternier, who also acknowledged the "concerns about how AI-generated music will affect the livelihood of artists."
These concerns are shared across the music industry. Earlier this year, more than 1,000 musicians, including Annie Lennox, Damon Albarn, and Kate Bush, released a silent album to protest UK government plans to allow AI companies to use copyright-protected work without permission.
The financial stakes are enormous. A recent study for the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers suggested that generative AI music could be worth £146 billion a year by 2028, potentially accounting for 60% of music libraries' revenues. The authors concluded that this puts 25% of creators' revenues at risk by 2028, a potential loss of £3.5 billion, underscoring the profound economic impact this technology could have on human artists.
