Drake and The Weeknd AI song pulled from Spotify and Apple

A song that uses artificial intelligence to clone the voices of Drake and The Weeknd is being removed from streaming services.

Heart On My Sleeve is no longer available on Apple Music, Spotify, Deezer and Tidal.

It is also in the process of being pulled from TikTok and YouTube, but some versions remain available.

It follows stinging criticism from publishers Universal Music Group which said the song violated copyright law.

The music publisher said platforms had a "legal and ethical responsibility" to prevent the use of services harming artists.

The track simulates Drake and The Weeknd trading verses about pop star and actress Selena Gomez, who previously dated The Weeknd.

The creator, known as @ghostwriter, claims the song was created by software trained on the musicians' voices.

After being posted on a number of platforms on Friday, the track went viral over the weekend.

It was initially removed from Apple, Deezer and Tidal on Monday afternoon, before TikTok, Spotify and YouTube were subsequently asked to remove it.

A link to an original version of the song on YouTube now says: "This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by Universal Music Group".

On Spotify it was streamed 629,439 times before it was pulled. At Spotify's lowest royalty rate of $0.003 per stream, that means it earned about $1,888 (£1,500).

Universal Music Group, which publishes both artists through Republic Records, said it has been doing its own innovation around AI for some time.

But it added: "The training of generative AI using our artists' music (which represents both a breach of our agreements and a violation of copyright law) as well as the availability of infringing content created with generative AI on DSPs [digital service providers], begs the question as to which side of history all stakeholders in the music ecosystem want to be on: the side of artists, fans and human creative expression, or on the side of deep fakes, fraud and denying artists their due compensation.

"These instances demonstrate why platforms have a fundamental legal and ethical responsibility to prevent the use of their services in ways that harm artists. We're encouraged by the engagement of our platform partners on these issues-as they recognise they need to be part of the solution."

One intellectual property (IP) lawyer told the BBC that the law around copyright and artificial intelligence was not straightforward.

Jani Ihalainen, of RPC, said UK copyright law provides performers with certain rights over their performances, including making of copies of recordings of specific performances.

"However, a 'deepfaked' voice, which does not specifically copy a performance, will most likely not be covered and could even be considered a protected work in its own right."

He added: "Current legislation is nowhere near adequate to address deepfakes and the potential issues in terms of IP and other rights."

Tony Rigg, a lecturer in music industry management at the University of Central Lancashire and music industry advisor, said it would take time to resolve these issues.

"Perhaps the most troubling aspect of this case is the undermining of moral rights," he said. "If anyone can mimic you, your brand, your sound, and style that could be very problematic. It will fall to the law to provide a remedy.

"The use of AI in the music industry is a double-edged sword, with tensions arising from its potential to undermine the value of human creativity, juxtaposed with its potential to augment it.

"Whilst the possibilities are enormous and evolutionary it is difficult to imagine the full extent of AI's potential to impact on the creation, consumption, and business of music in what promises to be a transformative era."

Neither artist has responded to the song yet, but Drake recently expressed displeasure at his voice being cloned.

"This is the final straw AI," he posted on Instagram, after stumbling across a fan-made video in which he appeared to be rapping the Ice Spice track Munch (Feeling U).