AI spinning tunes: Spotify launches a new AI-based DJ to give users more personalized music experience 

Ahead of Spotify’s forthcoming Stream On event, where the company is anticipated to reveal a redesigned home feed and other updates, the company today debuted a new AI tool dubbed “DJ” to help users customise their music listening experience.

Spotify’s DJ function, similar to a radio DJ, will deliver a curated collection of music along with AI-powered spoken comments about the songs and musicians you like, using what Spotify calls a “stunningly realistic voice.”

Why a streaming company needs an AI DJ?
According to the company, the concept is for Spotify to get to know customers so well that the DJ can choose what to play for you when you press the button. Or, as Spotify puts it, an “AI DJ in your phone.”

More generally, the feature has the potential to transform Spotify into a more relaxed, inactive experience for users who don’t want to tell Spotify what to play next or fumble around with its UI to find a mix they like.

The OpenAI-powered feature is still in beta testing as of today’s debut and is currently only accessible in English to Spotify Premium subscribers in the United States and Canada.

Spotify has dominated the market in customization technology for years, releasing its main playlist Discover Weekly in 2015 which was an instant success. 

This was followed by a number of other playlists intended to cater to the end user’s particular tastes, such as Release Radar, Daily Mixes, Your Time Capsule, Blend, and those targeted at specific pursuits, such as commuting or working out. 

The bid to stand out from the crowd
In recent years, Spotify has also established a pattern with its personalised yearly review, Spotify Wrapped, which has been imitated by competitors.

With the rest of the technology industry focusing on new ways to leverage AI advancements, it was only a matter of time before Spotify released its own take on how contemporary AI could be used to better its personalization experience.

In this instance, the company claims that its new DJ feature is a hybrid of its current customization technology, an AI voice from its 2022 Sonantic purchase, and Generative AI via OpenAI technology. Spotify says it has a commercial connection with OpenAI but does not refer to it as a partner.

Spotify instead claims to have given its music editors, specialists, scriptwriters, and data curators access to OpenAI’s Generative AI technology in order to expand their knowledge of music, artists, and categories. 

The technology is being used to produce “culturally pertinent, accurate pieces of commentary at volume,” according to the firm. Accuracy is perhaps a crucial term here, given Bing and Google’s recent AI failures. 

How the AI DJ will work?
Listeners will be provided with a personalised stream of music as they interact with the new DJ function, which will include both newer tracks and old faves. We believe that this video will be updated on a regular basis. They will also hear commentary immediately followed by the music to which it is referencing as they listen.

If the DJ misses what the user wishes to hear, the user can simply press the DJ button again to switch to a different genre, performer, or mood. The more you use the feature, the more accurate its recommendations will become, much like how skipping songs or liking a track would otherwise tell an algorithm of your preferences.

Meanwhile, the DJ’s accent is modelled on Spotify’s Head of Cultural Partnerships Xavier “X” Jernigan, who previously presented Spotify’s early programme podcast “The Get Up.” The company adds that his voice is the “first model” for the DJ function, implying that more voices will be added in the future.

To listen to the DJ, go to the Music Feed on the Home tab of Spotify’s iOS or Android app, then press Play on the DJ icon. The DJ will then begin playing music and providing brief comments.

Spotify’s marketing of the feature as an AI-powered addition is intended to pique customer interest in its streaming service at a time when AI developments such as ChatGPT and Google’s Bard are raising the consciousness of both the promise and the risks of AI advancements.

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