# Who owns AI-generated music? The UK and US position | Lyro

> Ownership of AI music has two parts: your contract with the tool and whether copyright exists at all. The US and UK positions, and a checklist.

Source: https://lyromusic.com/learn/who-owns-ai-generated-music

# Who owns AI-generated music? The UK and US position

Updated 21 September 2026, 6 min read, by the Lyro team

Two questions decide it. Between you and the tool, the contract decides: on Lyro you own whatever rights exist in your tracks and we claim none. Whether copyright exists depends on the country. The US Copyright Office says works generated entirely by AI are not copyrightable (29 Jan 2025). UK law protects computer-generated works under section 9(3) of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, but a March 2026 government report said this should be removed.

## Two questions that get mixed up

Ownership of AI music is two separate questions, and most confusion comes from answering one with the other.

- **Who holds the rights between you and the tool?** This is a contract question. The tool’s terms say whether it claims anything in your output and what you may do with it.

- **Is there any copyright to hold?** This is a question of law, and the answer differs by country. A contract cannot create copyright where the law does not grant it.

A tool can therefore truthfully say that the output is yours while the law gives that output little or no protection against copying. This article is general information, not legal advice.

## United States: no copyright in purely AI-generated work

In the United States, music generated entirely by AI is not protected by copyright. That is the position of the US Copyright Office in Part 2 of its report on copyright and artificial intelligence ([US Copyright Office, 29 Jan 2025](https://www.copyright.gov/ai/)).

- Works generated entirely by AI are not copyrightable.

- Prompts alone are not enough to make you the author of the output.

- Human-authored elements can be protected. So can human selection, arrangement and modification of AI-generated material.

In practice, if you type a prompt and release what comes back unchanged, assume that US copyright law will not help you stop someone copying it. The parts you wrote or performed yourself are a different matter.

## United Kingdom: protected today, under review

UK law currently protects computer-generated works, but that may not last. Section 9(3) of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA) covers them. In March 2026 the Government’s report on copyright and AI said that this protection should be removed, and the law is under review.

Lyro is operated by a company registered in England and Wales, so this is our home law. Our advice is not to build a release plan on section 9(3). We do not know what will replace it, or when.

| Country | Purely AI-generated work | Basis | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | Not copyrightable. Prompts alone are not enough. Human-authored elements, selection, arrangement and modification can be protected. | US Copyright Office, 29 Jan 2025 | Current position |
| United Kingdom | Protected as a computer-generated work | CDPA 1988, section 9(3) | Under review. The March 2026 government report said the protection should be removed. |

## What your own contribution changes

The more of the finished track that comes from you, the more there is for copyright to protect. The US Copyright Office says human-authored elements, and human selection, arrangement and modification, can be protected even when other parts are AI-generated.

| What you add | Why it matters | How to do it in Lyro |
|---|---|---|
| Lyrics you write | Text written by a person is a human-authored element. | Type your own lyrics, or rewrite the lyric writer’s draft in your own words. |
| A vocal you record | The performance comes from you, not from a model. | Record or upload a vocal, and Lyro writes a beat around it. |
| A beat you made | The instrumental is your own work. | Upload it and add a generated vocal. |
| Arrangement and editing | Selection, arrangement and modification are named by the Copyright Office. | Choose between takes, combine stems, edit and mix in the studio. |

Two cautions. The AI-generated parts stay unprotected in the US whatever you add around them. And whether a particular contribution is enough is a legal judgement that we cannot make for you. Keep dated evidence of your work: lyric drafts, voice recordings and project files.

## What Lyro’s licence covers

On Lyro, as between you and us, you own whatever rights exist in your tracks. We claim none. That is a contract between you and us, not a statement about copyright law.

- Every paid plan includes a worldwide, perpetual, royalty-free licence to use your outputs commercially, subject to our terms and our model providers’ terms.

- We do not promise that a track is protected by copyright. That depends on the law and on your contribution.

- We do not warrant, meaning guarantee, that outputs are original or non-infringing. A model can produce something that resembles existing music.

- We do not offer an indemnity, which would be a promise to cover your losses if someone makes a claim.

- Every download is tagged as AI-generated, and Lyria 3 Pro output carries Google’s SynthID watermark.

The full wording is on the [music rights and licence](https://lyromusic.com/legal/music-rights) page and in the [terms](https://lyromusic.com/legal/terms).

## A checklist before you release

Run through these seven points before a track goes to a distributor, the service that delivers music to streaming platforms.

- Save a dated copy of the terms of the tool you used, and note which plan you were on.

- List what you contributed: lyrics, vocal, beat, arrangement, edits. Keep the files.

- Listen for anything that resembles an existing song or a real singer’s voice. If it does, do not release it.

- Keep real artists’ names and voices out of prompts, titles and credits. Spotify bans impersonation.

- Read your distributor’s current AI policy. Some reject fully AI-generated music.

- Disclose AI use where asked. Spotify supports AI disclosure in credits, TikTok requires a label on realistic AI-generated content, and Article 50 of the EU AI Act applies from 2 Aug 2026 ([EU AI Act, Article 50](https://artificialintelligenceact.eu/article/50/)), with until 2 Dec 2026 for the marking duty on systems already on the market ([European Commission, 24 Jul 2026](https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/faqs/transparency-obligations-under-article-50-ai-act)).

- If the release matters commercially, ask a music lawyer in your country.

For the money side, see [Can you monetise AI music?](https://lyromusic.com/learn/can-you-monetize-ai-music)

## Questions

### Do I own the songs I make with AI?

On Lyro, as between you and us, yes: you own whatever rights exist in your tracks and we claim none. Whether copyright protects a track is a separate question of law. In the US, works generated entirely by AI are not copyrightable. In the UK, the rule that protects computer-generated works is under review.

### Can I copyright an AI-generated song in the US?

Not if it was generated entirely by AI, and prompts alone are not enough. Human-authored elements, such as lyrics you wrote or a vocal you recorded, and human selection, arrangement and modification can be protected ([US Copyright Office, 29 Jan 2025](https://www.copyright.gov/ai/)).

### Is AI-generated music protected by copyright in the UK?

Today, section 9(3) of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 protects computer-generated works. In March 2026 the Government’s report on copyright and AI said that protection should be removed, and the law is under review. Do not rely on it for long-term plans.

### Does Lyro claim any rights in my music?

No. We claim no rights in your tracks. Every paid plan includes a worldwide, perpetual, royalty-free licence to use your outputs commercially, subject to our terms and our model providers’ terms. We do not promise copyright protection and we give no indemnity.

## Sources

- [US Copyright Office, Copyright and Artificial Intelligence, Part 2: Copyrightability, 29 Jan 2025](https://www.copyright.gov/ai/)
- [EU AI Act, Article 50, applies from 2 Aug 2026](https://artificialintelligenceact.eu/article/50/)
- [European Commission, questions and answers on the transparency obligations in Article 50 of the AI Act, updated 24 Jul 2026](https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/faqs/transparency-obligations-under-article-50-ai-act)

## Hear it for yourself.

[Make a song](https://lyromusic.com/start)[Generate a prompt](https://lyromusic.com/ai-music-prompt-generator)