UMG’s new TikTok and Spotify deals are what we should expect in the age of AI

In its latest deal with TikTok, Universal Music Group said it’s all about “[promoting] human artistry.” That’s a pretty statement–but if you think it means UMG is anti-AI, think again.

The new UMG x TikTok deal is a multiyear licensing agreement that lets TikTok keep songs from chart-topping artists like Lady Gaga in exchange for royalties being paid every time those songs are included in user-generated content.

It marks the end of a somewhat rocky period between UMG and TikTok, during which the former accused the latter of “trying to build a music-based business, without paying fair value for the music,” and at one point pulled its songs from TikTok’s catalog.

With an expanded agreement struck, the two showed a united front: “TikTok will continue to offer its global community access to UMG’s expansive recorded music and publishing catalogs, while fostering deeper engagement between creators and UMG’s artists and songwriters through best-in-class technology and promotional capabilities,” they said in a joint statement.

Crucially, they added that the deal “also extends TikTok and UMG’s groundbreaking commitment to AI (artificial intelligence) protections that promote human artistry and ensure platform economics effectively flow through to artists and songwriters. TikTok and UMG will work together to remove unauthorized AI-generated music from the platform, while further improving artist and songwriter attribution.”

Sounds like UMG is cracking down on crunch machines that spit out tunes cribbed from human artists. Right?

Well, the key word in this statement is “unauthorized.” Because, around the same time it announced the TikTok deal, UMG revealed it also signed an agreement with Spotify

that explicitly allows Premium subscribers to make AI-generated covers and remixes of songs from UMG’s artists.

“Solving hard problems for music is what Spotify does, and fan-made covers and remixes are next,” Alex Norström, Spotify’s co-CEO, said in a statement. “What we’re building is grounded in consent, credit, and compensation for the artists and songwriters that take part. Through each technological transformation, we have worked together with Sir Lucian [Grainge, CEO of UMG] and his team to evolve the music ecosystem into a richer, more beneficial experience for fans and a more rewarding outcome for artists and songwriters.”

“The most valuable innovations in the music business always bring artists and fans closer together,” Grainge added. “That principle is at the heart of this pioneering AI-enabled superfan initiative, which is designed to support human artistry, deepen fan relationships, and create additional revenue opportunities for artists and songwriters. Building on our long track record of leading the industry through technology changes, and collaborating with Alex, Gustav, Daniel and the team at Spotify, this initiative is firmly artist-centric, rooted in responsible AI, and will drive growth for the entire ecosystem.”

Together, these two deals are a sign of the times. Decades-old companies that have built their legacies and fortunes on the work of human artists are fine with gen AI–as long as they get paid for it.