AI Music Policy

1. Overview

ToneGrid recognises that AI tools are a legitimate and increasingly important part of modern music production. From AI mastering and melody generation to fully synthetic compositions, these tools offer new creative possibilities for artists and labels worldwide.

We welcome AI-generated and AI-assisted music on our platform, provided it meets our content standards, disclosure requirements, and DSP guidelines. However, the evolving legal and commercial landscape around AI-generated content means that certain restrictions apply — most notably in cases where the AI tool itself has not properly secured the underlying rights required to commercialise its output.

2. What We Accept

ToneGrid accepts any of the following, subject to all other conditions in this Policy:

• AI-assisted music — human-created music that uses AI tools for elements such as mastering, stem separation, mixing, sound design, melody suggestion, lyric assistance, or arrangement. The human creative contribution remains primary.
• AI-generated music with human curation — music where the primary sonic content is AI-generated, but the human contributor has made meaningful creative decisions, including selection, arrangement, and post-production.
• Fully synthetic AI compositions — music generated entirely by AI tools from platforms that have obtained proper licensing and rights clearances for commercial distribution. The distributor (Client) must own or have been assigned all rights to commercialise the output.

3. Restrictions & General Exclusions

The following are prohibited regardless of the AI tool used:

• AI music that reproduces, samples, or closely imitates the voice, performance, or distinctive style of a specific real artist without their explicit consent
• AI music that uses training data derived from copyrighted recordings without appropriate licences from the rights holders
• Mis-attributed AI music — presenting fully AI-generated content as if performed by a human artist without disclosure
• AI-generated content used to flood DSP catalogues with low-quality or near-identical releases for the purpose of streaming fraud
• Content from AI platforms that are subject to active, unresolved legal disputes with major rights organisations where commercialisation has been explicitly restricted

4. Suno AI — Excluded Platform

ToneGrid does not currently accept music generated using Suno AI for distribution through our platform, for the following reasons:

• Unresolved Merlin licensing. Suno AI has not entered into a proper licensing agreement with Merlin, the global digital rights agency representing thousands of independent labels and distributors worldwide. Merlin members collectively account for a significant proportion of the music in Suno’s training data, and no commercial deal has been signed to licence that use.
• Active litigation. Major record labels and industry groups have filed legal action against Suno AI, alleging that its training process infringed copyrighted recordings without consent or compensation. Until these disputes are resolved and appropriate licensing is in place, the commercial status of Suno’s output remains legally uncertain.
• DSP risk. Distributing content with an unresolved rights basis exposes our Clients, End Users, and ToneGrid to takedown risk, royalty clawbacks, and account suspension by DSP partners.

This restriction applies specifically to content generated by Suno AI. It does not apply to music about Suno, commentary on AI music, or any other content that merely references Suno as a topic.

ToneGrid will review this position if Suno AI enters into a satisfactory licensing agreement with Merlin and resolves outstanding litigation with rights holders. We will update this Policy accordingly.

5. Disclosure Requirements

Clients and End Users distributing AI-generated or AI-assisted music through ToneGrid must:

• Accurately complete ToneGrid’s AI content disclosure fields during the upload process, indicating whether a release is AI-generated, AI-assisted, or human-created
• Identify the AI tool(s) used to create the Content in the release metadata where required by ToneGrid or DSP partners
• Comply with any DSP-specific AI content labelling requirements (for example, Spotify’s AI-generated content disclosure, or Apple Music’s AI use guidelines)
• Not falsely represent fully AI-generated content as human-performed, including through artist name, bio, or press materials uploaded alongside a release

Failure to disclose AI generation accurately is treated as a material misrepresentation under our Terms of Service and may result in takedown, account suspension, or termination under our Anti-Fraud Policy.

6. Ownership & Copyright

The legal status of copyright in AI-generated music varies by jurisdiction and continues to evolve. You are solely responsible for assessing the copyright status of AI-generated Content in the territories where it is distributed.

By submitting AI-generated Content to ToneGrid for distribution, you represent and warrant:

• You own or have been duly assigned all rights necessary to commercially distribute the Content
• The AI tool used to generate the Content is properly licensed to produce commercial output and does not infringe third-party copyrights in its training data
• You have reviewed and complied with the terms of service of the AI platform used to generate the Content, including any restrictions on commercial use
• Distribution of the Content will not violate the rights of any third party, including rights holders whose recordings may have been used to train the AI model

ToneGrid does not make representations as to the copyrightability of AI-generated works and takes no responsibility for legal disputes arising from the ownership or licensing status of such Content.

7. DSP Compliance

All DSPs have their own and evolving policies on AI-generated content. ToneGrid is not responsible for a DSP’s decision to reject, remove, or demonetise AI-generated Content. DSPs reserve the right to:

• Reject AI-generated releases that do not meet their labelling or quality requirements
• Apply reduced algorithmic distribution or playlist eligibility to AI-generated content
• Remove AI-generated content retroactively if their policies change or if new information emerges regarding the rights basis
• Clawback royalties paid on AI-generated content later found to infringe third-party rights

ToneGrid will endeavour to communicate DSP policy changes as they relate to AI content promptly, but Clients remain responsible for keeping up to date with individual DSP guidelines.

8. Volume, Quality & Spam Prevention

ToneGrid reserves the right to impose limits on the volume of AI-generated releases submitted by a single Client or End User account within a given period. Automated or bulk submission of AI-generated content — particularly where releases are near-identical or designed to exploit streaming algorithms — is prohibited and will be treated as catalogue spam.

ToneGrid’s moderation team may review AI-generated releases for quality and compliance at any time. Releases that do not meet our minimum quality or metadata standards may be rejected without refund of applicable submission fees.

9. Enforcement

Violations of this Policy will be handled in accordance with our Anti-Fraud Policy and Terms of Service. Actions ToneGrid may take include:

• Rejection of non-compliant releases prior to distribution
• Takedown of distributed Content that violates this Policy
• Withholding of royalties pending investigation
• Issuance of a formal warning under the Anti-Fraud Policy warning system
• Suspension or termination of the Client or End User account

Questions about this policy or requests to review a specific AI tool’s eligibility should be directed to content@tonegrid.pro.