Spotify has announced an AI Persona badge for artist profiles to indicate when an artist’s public identity may be AI-generated. The badge is part of its Artist Identity & Trust efforts and will complement existing features that provide information about artists and AI use in music.
Spotify AI Persona badge
The AI Persona badge indicates that an artist’s identity may be AI-generated and does not represent a real person. Spotify said it is introducing the label after listener feedback about profiles that appear to represent humans but use AI-generated personas.
Artists can disclose their status through Spotify for Artists, but Spotify will also review profiles whose public identity, including their name and imagery, appears to represent a photorealistic AI-generated identity. The initial reviews will focus on artists meeting defined audience thresholds so the labels cover the vast majority of artist profiles users visit.
The badge will appear on:
- Artist profile banner and About section
- Search
- Track rows across playlists
Tapping the badge will show whether the artist self-disclosed the AI Persona status or Spotify reviewed the profile and made an informed determination. Artists whose profiles are labeled by Spotify will be notified and can self-disclose or appeal. Spotify also plans to let listeners report suspected AI Persona profiles to its review team.
AI Personas and recommendations
Spotify will exclude AI Personas from editorial and algorithmic recommendations by default. Their music will not appear in personalized recommendations unless a listener follows the AI Persona, for example.
The badge concerns the artist’s public identity, not how the music was made. Artists can use AI as a creative tool in different ways, so the badge does not indicate that a song itself was generated using AI.
Spotify uses AI Credits to let artists disclose how they used AI during a song’s creative process, while SongDNA provides information about the artists and contributors behind a track.
Other Spotify artist features
Spotify introduced several artist identity and transparency features in 2026:
- Verified by Spotify: Indicates that an artist is a real human presenting themselves authentically. Hundreds of thousands of profiles are verified, with the majority being independent artists, representing more than 99% of the artists Spotify listeners actively search for.
- AI Credits: Tens of thousands are submitted daily, allowing artists to disclose AI use in music creation.
- SongDNA: Provides information about artists and contributors behind a track.
- Artist Details: Uses Spotify platform data to show career milestones, release history and touring activity.
- Artist Profile Protection: Lets artists review and approve releases delivered to Spotify to protect their identity and prevent confusion from misattributed music.
Spotify also said it tunes its algorithms to highlight authentic human artists and, based on available signals, works to exclude spam and low-effort content from recommendations.
Availability
- Artist self-disclosure: Available through Spotify for Artists starting today.
- AI Persona badge: Begins appearing in mid-September 2026 on relevant profiles, including the banner and About section, Search and track rows across playlists.
- Appeals: Artists whose profiles are labeled by Spotify can self-disclose or appeal after notification.
- Listener reports: Reporting of suspected AI Persona profiles will be available in the coming months.
Spotify said it will continue adapting its approach as the music ecosystem changes and as it receives feedback from artists, listeners and industry partners.