Load more

Declaration of AI-generated music pieces

Music pieces that are generated entirely by AI tools, like Suno or Udio, without human participation do not qualify as works protected by copyright under Swiss law.

Only works arising from a person's own intellectual creation – typically a composition or lyrics – are eligible for copyright protection.

The mere input of prompts does not qualify as a creative contribution within the meaning of Swiss copyright law.

FAQ: Frequently asked questions

Declaration of AI-generated music pieces

  • Works created with the help of artificial intelligence can in principle and under certain conditions be registered with SUISA.

    Works generated exclusively by artificial intelligence without any human creative input on the other hand are not protected by copyright and cannot therefore be registered with SUISA. When authors sign the SUISA rights administration agreement, they undertake not to register any musical works that are pure artificial intelligence products.

    When artificial intelligence serves only as a tool – for example to generate ideas which are then developed into new works through human creativity – it is a different matter. In this case, there is a human creative contribution so the work is protected by copyright, and as its author you can register it with SUISA.

    If only part of a work is generated by AI, for example only the lyrics or the music, and the other part was created by you, you can register the work as follows:

    1. Music generated by AI, lyrics created by the registering person:

    C: SUISA GENAI Prov
    A: Name of registering person

    1. Music created by the registering person, lyrics generated by AI:

    C: Name of registering person
    A: SUISA GENAI Prov

  • No, because they were entirely generated by artificial intelligence. Only natural persons qualify as authors within the meaning of Article 6 CopA. That is why products generated purely by AI are precluded from copyright protection. Moreover, SUISA’s terms and conditions of rights administration obligate authors to refrain from registering musical works generated solely by artificial intelligence.

  • This depends on the general terms and conditions (GTC) of the relevant digital distributors and platforms. You must also consider possible restrictions in the GTC of the AI provider.

  • Find more information in our blog article:
    "Artificial intelligence and copyright law" (Link)

  • Pure AI generated products are not protected by copyright. Only natural persons qualify as authors within the meaning of Article 6 CopA. On the other hand, if AI is “only” used as a tool, the product can be protected by copyright if all the protection requirements are met. Such copyrights then remain with the author even after they cancel their subscription.

  • No.

  • If the author created both the lyrics and the music, and only the voice was generated by AI, the author is entitled to 100% of the rights and they can publish the work. However, possible restrictions in the general terms and conditions of the AI provider must be taken into account.

Show more