UMG-backed Music IP Holdings (MIH) has launched a portfolio of AI music patents, aiming to establish an industry standard for how licensed AI-generated content is created, tracked and protected. The move gives digital services a route to build authorised AI tools such as covers, remixes and interactive music experiences, while also equipping rights holders with legal safeguards against unauthorised use and redistribution of AI-generated material.

The portfolio comprises more than 24 granted patents, with a further 50 pending, covering technology such as watermarking, artist approval systems and controlled distribution, allowing content to move between "open" platforms while still being tracked and monetised. Udio and Khosla Ventures-backed GRAI are the first two platforms to license the patents, and the coverage extends beyond music into audio, video, film, animation, images, text and name/likeness rights. MIH was formed via a July 2025 partnership between UMG and IP firm Liquidax Capital, with UMG executive Michael Nash saying the initiative supports the label's "artist-centric strategy" in the AI era.