‘It is about choice — if you want to hear AI music or if you don't.’ One Spotify user got so frustrated with AI slop that they created an ‘AI blocker’, but it 'may violate Spotify's terms of service'

A Spotify user has developed their own AI song-filtering software It's been downloaded by hundreds of users, but it's creator warns that it may violate Spotify's terms of serviceOver the past 12 months, Spotify told us it removed 'over 25 million AI tracks'

AI-generated music is a growing frustration for users of Spotify and other music streaming services — and now one Spotify user has taken matters into their own hands.

To combat the flood of AI songs plaguing their algorithm, software developer Cedrik Sixtus has built an ‘AI blocker’ that labels and filters out AI-generated tracks from their listening sessions. Since developing the tool, Sixtus has shared it online where it’s been downloaded by hundreds of users via Spotify’s web platform.

Speaking with the BBC, Sixtus summarized the aim of his filter tool quite simply, saying "it is about choice — if you want to hear AI music or if you don't”. He also told the BBC that using his software "may violate Spotify's terms of service" — so you might want to proceed with caution if you're thinking of installing it, or a similar blocker.So how does the tool work? The main objective of Sixtus’ AI blocker is to filter out a list of over 4,700 'artists' that are suspected to be AI. This detection is based on community tracking methods, and factors in other characteristics such as album art, and how often music is uploaded to the purported artist’s profile.

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While users like Sixtus are actively attempting to extinguish the AI flames, the big dog Spotify has yet to clearly label AI-generated songs, which Sixtus finds the most frustrating part.

Spotify has just celebrated its 20th anniversary, and to mark the milestone I spoke with Sten Garmark, the company's Head of Consumer Experiences at Spotify. As part of our discussion he teased the company’s future development plans, which include new measures to combat the rise of AI uploads.

Garmark told me that Spotify removed “over 25 million AI tracks” in the last year, and emphasized the company's ongoing commitment to tackling the issue. “We have rules against impersonation, and we've also helped set up new protectionist mechanisms for artists so that they can more securely control what goes up on their platform,” he added.

At the same time, Spotify has refrained from penalizing artists who use AI as a creative tool in small doses, and a lack of clarity over where it draws the line is one of the issues with its AI filtering system — and it's one reason why loyal subscribers are slowly losing confidence in the service, argues Sixtus. "[Spotify] has to figure out what listeners want and how artists feel — all while AI is improving, being used more widely and becoming harder to detect," he shared.

Not only is the number of AI-generated uploads rising, the technology used to create AI songs is becoming increasingly accessible, meaning pretty much anyone can create a song, and an AI persona to go with it.

In the current UK iOS App Store charts, AI music generator Suno sits in the number one spot in the music category, ahead of Spotify in third (Global Player is in second spot). If major streaming platforms don’t start clamping down on strengthening their AI filters now, it gives the developers of software such as Suno more time to perfect their technology, and fool more music fans — and we could soon find we've passed the point of no return.