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YouTube Music introduced a labeling system that flags songs made with generative AI, appearing on the player page and within the main YouTube app. Partners can classify tracks as Fully Gen AI, Partly Gen AI, or No Gen AI, with YouTube using both partner disclosures and its own detection tools to apply the labels.
YouTube Music has started displaying an "AI" label beneath track titles for songs fully or partly generated using AI, including cases where AI created major elements like vocals. Tapping the label reveals details on how AI was used in the track. YouTube says similar labels will eventually appear in the main YouTube video player as well.
YouTube Music is now displaying labels directly on the player page for tracks where AI played a significant role in their creation. Tapping the label opens a menu with additional details about the track's AI involvement. YouTube says it is identifying these tracks through partnerships with music labels and its own internal detection tools, applying labeling standards already used elsewhere on the platform.
Michael Smith, a 54-year-old from North Carolina, was sentenced to 18 months in prison and fined $8 million after orchestrating a large-scale AI music streaming scam. He used thousands of fake accounts and up to 10,000 bots to generate billions of streams of AI-created songs, earning millions in royalties and surpassing major artists' streaming figures. The FBI-led investigation uncovered the extent of his operation, which involved creating hundreds of thousands of AI tracks to sustain the fraudulent streams over several years.
Multiple Pixel 11 and Pixel 11 Pro/Pro XL owners say Google Maps freezes, flickers, or shows pixelated graphical artifacts when used with Android Auto, over both wired and wireless connections. The issue persists despite clearing app data, reinstalling apps, switching cables, or changing resolution settings, and doesn't affect all users or vehicles.
YouTube Music is rolling out two updates: a new AI-audio feature called 'your podcast lineup' that gives spoken previews and reasons for recommended podcasts, and expanded capabilities for its Ask Music assistant, letting users customize their listening queue and get more details about artists. Both features will roll out worldwide soon and are available to regular app users and YouTube Premium subscribers.
YouTube unveiled two AI features for YouTube Music at its Made On YouTube event: Ask Music, a conversational search tool covering over 300 million songs including remixes and live versions, and Your Podcast Lineup, a personalized weekly audio guide highlighting recommended podcasts and episodes. Ask Music lets users type natural-language requests, like building a mix based on a song's influences or asking who played on a track, instead of searching by title or artist.
Spotify is trialing a 'Premium Early Access' feature that withholds new album releases from free users for three days in select markets like India and Bangladesh, while paying subscribers get immediate access. The delay reportedly stems from licensing terms pushed by Universal Music Group rather than a decision Spotify made unilaterally, and the same restriction is expected to hit rival ad-supported services like YouTube Music and Amazon Music.
Users across iOS, Android, and web are reporting that YouTube and YouTube Music apps hang or fail to load content, with some unable to play older videos or seeing blank home pages. The issue reportedly persists even after reinstalling apps and clearing cache, and some users say they've experienced it for months. Google has not yet acknowledged the problem publicly.
A tech writer subscribed to YouTube Premium Lite hoping for an ad-free experience without bundled services like YouTube Music, but found sponsored videos still appearing throughout the app on both TV and mobile after activation. Despite accepting that ads would remain on Shorts and music videos, they discovered sponsored placements interspersed regularly in their regular viewing feed as well, prompting them to cancel the subscription after just one month.
The unofficial Android Auto app Xtream Player, successor to Fermata Xtream, has released version 1.4.0 with a new Games add-on for Premium subscribers, starting with Chess and Connect 4, meant only for use when the car is parked. The update also refreshes app icons, improves YouTube Music playback behavior, and fixes a bug that caused a black screen when using the side-panel skip control.
A tech guide outlines steps drivers can take to improve music streaming quality through Android Auto, including pre-downloading playlists to avoid network-dependent quality drops and adjusting download quality settings. It also recommends reviewing EQ and normalization settings, since phone-based bass boosts or Spotify's Loud normalization can clash with a car's own audio processing.