Spotify Yanks More Than 50M AI “Slop and Spam” Tracks a Year Into Crackdown

Spotify has removed over 50 million AI-generated "slop and spam" tracks from its recommendations, according to recent reports. The streaming platform revealed this move a year after announcing AI protections, citing that listeners had expressed their displeasure with the low-quality songs. The 50 million removed tracks were added to the 75 million "spammy tracks" the company had previously eliminated.

Spotify cited listener feedback and engagement as the primary reasons for the removal, noting a clear pattern of users skipping or avoiding the identified "slop or spam" tracks. The company has since implemented numerous updates to its recommendation system to remove spam and slop content and surface music by authentic, human artists.

Spotify explained that no single signal is effective in catching spam or slop, and thus combines various tools, including listener engagement, upload patterns, metadata, and third-party AI detection tools. The streaming service also monitors new spam tactics, such as mass uploads, duplicates, SEO manipulation, spammy playlist networks, and artificially short tracks, and updates its systems accordingly.

While Spotify focuses on combating AI-generated content, it has also adopted AI in other areas, such as partnering with ElevenLabs for AI-narrated audiobooks. However, Spotify has faced criticism for not being vigilant enough in removing AI fakes of deceased artists and musical impersonators, leading to the departure of King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard from the platform in 2025 in protest of CEO Daniel Ek's investments in AI drone technology.