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The short version
What has changed? A recording generated by AI is not eligible for the ARIA Charts. A recording made by humans that used generative AI still is eligible, provided it meets the rest of the Chart rules.
When does it start? The ARIA Chart dated Monday 31 August 2026, published Friday 28 August.
What do I have to do? Answer the new generative AI question accurately when you submit a release to the ARIA survey. Consider these rules when recording if you want your track to be eligible for the ARIA Charts. Nothing else changes at your end.
What is an example of an ineligible track? A lead vocal generated by AI makes a track ineligible, the same as any key instrumental component of a song. A human lead vocal with AI backing vocals underneath is considered AI-assisted and therefore eligible.
Three categories
The detail
What has ARIA announced? ARIA has updated the ARIA Charts Code of Practice to set out how recordings made with generative AI are treated. It follows the global principles published by IFPI on 30 July 2026. The changes take effect from the Chart dated Monday 31 August 2026, published Friday 28 August.
What makes a recording eligible? A recording developed using generative AI is eligible only where all three of these apply:
So is ARIA banning AI music from the ARIA Charts? No. Nothing changes for an artist using AI as a tool. What is out is a recording with no human performance at its centre.
How does ARIA define an AI-generated track? A recording where generative AI produced the entirety of the creative elements, or the primary portion of them. That includes a lead vocal generated by AI, a key instrumental performance generated by AI, or music generated entirely from a prompt. Human mixing, mastering, EQ and editing do not change that eligibility.
What is an AI-assisted track, and is it eligible? It is eligible, provided the other conditions are met. An AI-assisted recording is one created almost entirely by humans, where humans performed the lead vocal and the primary instruments and generative AI was used in a minor way for some expressive elements. AI might have added backing vocals, played a few of the non-primary instruments, or materially changed a human performance, for example a translation using a voice-to-voice or voice-to-instrument tool working from that human performance.
What about AI used in music production? A recording is not excluded for using AI in negligible, non-material ways. These are functions that would not normally be disclosed when done by other automated means: AI mastering, stem separation, AI drum machines, short AI samples in the background, AI patches for instruments that a person then plays, AI effects that would otherwise come from a non-AI plugin such as reverb.
Why is this needed now? Recordings with no human performance behind them are generating streams on streaming services. Australian artists are competing for attention in the most crowded market in history and a AI-generated recording taking a Chart place matters to the people who create human artistry. ARIA is not interested in promoting or celebrating the success of AI generated music that does not contain human artistry.
What does “substantially human made” mean? Human creative input is the primary driver of the work. We assess each recording on its own facts against that principle, and we expect that to get harder before it gets easier.
How will ARIA know? You tell us. Every release submitted to the ARIA survey now requires a declaration about the use of generative AI, and that declaration is what ARIA works from. Where a credible concern is raised about a recording, we go back to the rights holder for more information before any decision is made.
What if ARIA has a concern about my recording? We will contact you or your representative, tell you what the concern is, and give you the chance to respond with evidence supporting the recording’s eligibility before a decision is made. If you do not agree with our assessment, you can ask for the matter to be referred to the ARIA Chart & Marketing Committee and then the ARIA Board for review.
Do the new AI rules apply to charts already published? The criteria apply to Charts dated from 31 August 2026. Where a recording was included in a Chart and is later found to be ineligible, ARIA can correct that Chart, which includes adjusting positions and withdrawing accreditations.
Will ARIA publish a list of recordings it has assessed or excluded? No. We notify the rights holder directly and we do not comment on individual assessments.
Can a re-recorded version be submitted? A version that replaces the AI-generated elements with human performance is a new recording and can go to the ARIA survey on its own merits. It does not carry the chart history of the earlier version.
How are albums assessed? Track by track. A track that is not eligible does not count towards the release.
Isn’t this anti-competitive? No. It is a published eligibility standard for a chart, applied to everyone from the same date, with a disputes process behind it.
Independent artists worry this will be used to keep them off the charts. It is a fair concern and it is why the standard and the process is public. Any process capable of removing a recording from the ARIA Charts must be transparent, evidence-based and applied consistently. The ARIA Board will make the final decision on any disputed tracks and there are representatives of independent labels and artists on the ARIA Board.
Isn’t AI just another tool, like a synthesiser or Auto-Tune? Producers and artists have always used technology, no one at ARIA is arguing with that. The line sits where generative AI produces the primary creative elements of a recording. A human using tools is one thing. A performance without a human is another.
If an AI track is popular, shouldn’t the ARIA Charts reflect that? The ARIA Charts are about celebrating the success and recording the consumption of human music, not AI generated music. Popularity still decides the positions. Streams and sales do the counting, the same as always, and a chart position has never been an endorsement. What has changed is what qualifies as a recording made by people.
Does this affect royalties, radio play or distribution? No. Chart eligibility does not determine what anyone is paid, what radio plays, or what a service carries.
AI is developing quickly. How will these rules keep up? We wrote the principles broadly so they hold as the technology moves but acknowledge that this is a rapidly moving area. We always keep the Code under review and change it when we need to.
Does this help with streaming fraud? The two overlap. ARIA could already remove anomalous or unsubstantiated streams and sales from the ARIA Charts, and the updated Code confirms that a recording with a fraudulently boosted stream count will not be recognised in them. Stopping it properly takes the whole industry, and we have said so repeatedly.
What about the labelling of AI content? AI music should be clearly labelled so fans can see where generative AI has been used. ARIA supports the labelling standard announced by the global music community on 10 July 2026, which distinguishes “AI-Generated” from “AI-Assisted”. What matters for the ARIA Charts is that your declaration to ARIA on the use of generative AI is accurate.
IFPI published more criteria than this. Why has ARIA applied three? IFPI’s principles include a test on whether the generative AI service used is properly authorised. Licensing between major music companies and AI companies is a rapidly developing area but given it is still developing ARIA has not applied that test to chart eligibility at this stage. We will review it as the licensing position of major music gen AI tools becomes clearer.
Does this affect the ARIA Awards? Yes. A recording that is not eligible for the ARIA Charts is not eligible for the ARIA Awards.
What happens to accreditations and ARIA #1 Awards? Where ARIA determines that a recording is ineligible, it may withdraw accreditations, and revoke or request the return of any ARIA #1 Award.
Where can I read the rules? The updated ARIA Charts Code of Practice is on the ARIA website. If you have a question about a specific release, contact the ARIA Charts team through the details on the ARIA Charts pages.
