Competition rules

Battle 001 schedule

Voting opens August 28, 2026 at 7:00 PM Pacific and remains open for exactly 72 hours. Voting closes August 31, 2026 at 7:00 PM Pacific. The official winner reveal is scheduled for September 1, 2026 at 7:00 PM Pacific.

Pre-launch listening preview

Song A and Song B may be played before voting opens. Pre-launch listening does not unlock or cast a ballot. Listeners must return during the official voting window and complete the listening requirement before voting.

The matchup

Ready for Forever presents two anonymous R&B love songs about finally being ready to take a relationship to the next level and get married. One is made by the Artist and one is made by AI. Until the reveal, they are identified only as Song A and Song B.

Equal blind presentation

Both songs use the same 45-second excerpt length, player design, volume defaults and visual treatment. Creator names, artwork, filenames, metadata and source labels stay hidden so listeners judge the music rather than the method.

How the ballot unlocks

A listener must play at least 15 seconds of Song A and at least 15 seconds of Song B. Completing both listening requirements unlocks the winner ballot. Skipping through a track does not earn listening credit.

The winner vote

Each listener chooses one song as the better track. That choice is final once locked. One winner ballot is allowed per device for Battle 001. The song receiving the higher number of eligible winner votes is declared the winner. If the eligible totals are exactly equal, the official result is reported as a tie.

The optional AI prediction

Listeners may separately predict which song was made by AI. The prediction is optional, is reported as audience accuracy and never affects the winner vote or the competition outcome.

Voting integrity

Duplicate, automated, coordinated or manipulated voting is prohibited. Suspicious activity may be reviewed, and ineligible activity may be excluded before the official count is published. Administrative changes to competition state or results must be auditable.

When voting closes

At 7:00 PM Pacific on August 31, the ballot closes and no new votes are accepted. The eligible count is reviewed and kept sealed until the scheduled reveal.

How the winner is revealed

At 7:00 PM Pacific on September 1, the Results page will publish the winning song, the Artist/AI identity of both songs, creator names and credits, each song’s eligible vote percentage, the total number of eligible votes and the community’s AI-identification accuracy.

Entry and eligibility

Final counsel-approved rules must also define the AI competition class, artist eligibility, territory, age, rights, disqualification, technical standards, prize terms and dispute handling.