How AI Can Help Renew the Music Industry by Doing Small Things (Guest Wire)

The latest advancements in artificial intelligence are improving the tedious tasks that go beneath the industry’s excellence, from simplifying marketing strategies to facilitating customer engagement to managing financial problems. . And as this environment continues to grow, companies are discovering unprecedented ways to not only navigate but thrive within these new paradigms.

In our previous guest column, we explored how the emerging wave of music technology is empowering musicians, artists and the creative process. Now, we focus our attention on technologies that are changing the business side of the industry, including artist services, ticketing, fan engagement and more.

Music marketing has continued to evolve and continues to be driven by data. The next natural step after creation and distribution, marketing involves creating assets for the campaign to interact effectively with the right audience. Traditionally, this has been a hardware-intensive task, but now, AI-powered startups are offering success by automating much of this process.

Startups like Symphony and un:hurd now offer independent campaign management services, handling everything from social media ads to DSP and playlists to from one independent agency. Some of these platforms even include financial management tools in their offerings.

“Having financial management tools integrated into one platform allows for better financial management and planning,” says Rameen Satarfounder/CEO of financial management platform REASONS. “Overall, a unified platform simplifies the complexities of managing a music career, empowering musicians to focus more on their creative work and succeed in the industry.”

Another hot topic as of late has been monetization of superfans, with many startups creating platforms for artists to connect with and monetize directly from fans. see. From the fan-made content on Softside to the artist-to-fan platform Vault.fm, which recently partnered with James Blake, these platforms offer personalized experiences that include exclusive content, NFTs , merchandise, early access to tickets and pre-ordered offers.

“The future of fan engagement will be dictated by the community. No two fan groups are the same, so every artist will deliver an engagement. Andy Appleco-founder/CEO of superfan platform Mellomanic. “Each artists will have their own unique culture, but they will share one thing in common: Each community will adapt, organize and innovate to support the cause of singer.”

Managing metadata and accounting returns through the world wide web of streaming services is another area that is seeing innovation. With around 220 million songs already registered on DSPs, according to content ID company Audible Magic, startups are stepping in to provide solutions across the music distribution chain and to make money. New tools are being developed for organizing and searching catalogs, managing rates and divisions, processing returns, finding unexpected returns, and cleaning up metadata errors.

“While we still have well-publicized challenges in terms of artists’ salaries, there are opportunities for innovation throughout the value chain, driving growth through improved processes and new models,” it said. say. Gareth Deakin of Sonorous Global Consulting, a London-based consultancy that works with music labels and creators to make the most of emerging technologies.

Another issue that some AI companies have stepped in to help solve is anti-fraud – a huge issue stemming from the ease of music distribution and the sheer volume of new music being released every day. each one. Startups are helping labels and digital service providers solve this problem with anti-piracy, content detection and audio fingerprinting technology. For example, Beatdapp, which has developed powerful AI technology to detect fake streams, has partnered with Universal Music Group, SoundExchange and Napster. Elsewhere, MatchTune has a patented algorithm that detects artificial and AI-generated audio, and a few others are developing technology to ensure fair use of copyrighted material by linking copyright holders and AI developers for reasonable compensation. Music recognition technology (MRT), which also uses audio fingerprinting technology, is becoming the dominant way to identify, track and monetize music performances across different platforms, to including floors and other commercial areas.

In the music industry, there has been little innovation in ticketing, especially at the group level. However, that is beginning to change, as new technologies are emerging to track ticket sales and statistics, thereby helping agents and promoters reduce manual workloads.

RealCount is another startup that helps artists, agencies and promoters understand ticket data. “We see RealCount as a second brain for promoters, agents and venues, automating ticket counts and sales data from any point of sale.” Diane Gremorecompany founder/CEO. Some interesting developments are taking place in how live events happen, with platforms like Conndense providing immersive 3D content in real time.

Drew Thurlow is the founder of Opening Ceremony Media where he advises music and music technology companies. He was previously director of A&R at Sony Music, and director of artist partnerships and industry relations at Pandora. His first book, about music and AI, will be released by Routledge in early 2026.

Rufy Anam Ghazi is a seasoned music business professional with over eight years of experience in product development, data analysis, research, business strategy and collaboration. Known for data-driven decision-making and innovative decision-making, he has successfully led product development, market analysis, and strategic growth strategies, leveraging strong industry relationships.