Spotify is moving closer to a new kind of AI music feature: one that lets fans make covers and remixes using artists’ music, but only when those artists agree to take part.
During its second-quarter earnings call on Tuesday, the company again teased the upcoming release of the product and announced a new partnership with Merlin, a licensing partner for independent labels and distributors. The deal expands the project beyond Universal Music Group (UMG) and adds more than 30,000 labels from Merlin’s network.
What Spotify is building
The planned product is centered on fan-made covers and remixes. Spotify has described the feature as a way for listeners to use AI to interact with existing artists’ work, rather than a tool for creating fully artificial songs from scratch.
That distinction is central to how Spotify is presenting the effort. Co-CEO Gustav Söderström told investors on Tuesday’s call that the product is about "real artists, not fake artists." In other words, Spotify is trying to separate its AI music plan from services that generate songs without being tied to participating artists.
The company has not said that every artist or every track will be part of the product. Instead, Spotify noted that it does not need a full music catalog to begin. The first version will be a research preview made available to a subset of users, though the company did not say when that preview would arrive.
Why the Merlin partnership matters
Merlin’s addition gives Spotify access to a much broader pool of independent labels and distributors for this AI remix and covers project. The source article says the deal brings more than 30,000 labels from Merlin’s network to the product, alongside Universal Music Group (UMG), which was already part of the effort.
That matters because a remix or cover product depends on rights, permission and participation. If the feature is designed around artist approval, Spotify needs partners that can help clear the way for music to be included in a structured catalog.
For listeners, the visible result could be a catalog where they can experiment with covers and remixes based on music from artists who have opted in. For artists and labels, the important point is that Spotify is pitching this as a system with consent, credit and compensation built in.
Consent, credit and compensation
Spotify’s executives repeatedly framed the product around permission. Co-CEO Alex Norström said, "We want artists to be consenting [to add] their work into this catalog, so people can play around with covers and remixes based on their art."
Norström also emphasized attribution and payment. He said Spotify wants to give artists credit and "drive the compensation for this." He described the approach as "the first legal way to partake in this AI tailwind that we see coming for interactive music."
Those points outline the product’s basic promise:
- Artists would agree before their work is included.
- Fan-made AI covers and remixes would be based on participating artists’ music.
- Spotify says artists should receive credit.
- The product is expected to create compensation for artists.
Spotify has previously said the tool will launch as a paid add-on. That would make it an additional revenue stream for artists, according to the company.
How this fits into the AI music debate
AI music is already a major presence on streaming platforms. Deezer recently noted that more than 50% of daily track uploads were generated with AI, up from 10% in January 2025.
Spotify appears to be responding to that broader shift by trying to define a controlled version of AI music inside its own platform. Rather than focusing on fully artificial artists or songs, the company is positioning its product as a way for existing artists to participate in fan creativity while retaining a role in how their work is used.
Söderström made that argument directly on the earnings call. "Normal generative music will happen with or without us. This product will not happen without us, and it needs to exist so that existing artists can can participate in this."
The line captures Spotify’s strategic case. The company is not saying AI music can be stopped. It is saying there should be a licensed path for AI-powered covers and remixes that includes the artists whose work makes those creations possible.
What remains unclear
Spotify has offered the broad outline of the product, but important details are still missing. The company has not said when the research preview will arrive. It has also not described how the paid add-on will be priced or how compensation will work.
What is clear from the announcement is that Spotify is building its AI remix and covers product around partnerships, licensing and artist participation. With Merlin now joining UMG, the project has expanded to include a large independent-label network before the preview has even launched.
For now, the most important takeaway is simple: Spotify wants to turn AI fan remixes and covers into a permission-based product, not an unlicensed free-for-all. The success of that approach will depend on how many artists choose to participate and how useful the tool feels once users can try it.