GoKawiilThe Spotify music app is seen on a phone in New York City on June 4, 2024.
Streaming music apps have been nudging users into the artificial intelligence era with a limited track record of success. But AI-based recommendation tools from Apple, Amazon and pure-play streaming company Spotify are moving ahead, with Spotify's latest approach to the future of personal music discovery leaning into the AI prompt in multiple formats. Experts say these tech investments may be critical to Spotify's ability to build a moat around its business as the core input, music, becomes commoditized across the streaming apps.
A new ChatGPT integration rolled out recently by Spotify allows users to connect their accounts directly to OpenAI's generative AI chatbot. The launch is good for OpenAI in its broader effort to turn ChatGPT into a platform for third-party apps that function inside conversations. For Spotify, it's a bet that personalized music and podcast recommendations will be improved through the now-familiar format of chatting with an AI and letting it know what you want.
Spotify users can ask for songs, artists, albums, playlists or podcast episodes by mood, genre or topic. Results surface inside ChatGPT and open in the Spotify app for playback. Users can interact with the recommendation, and offer specificity beyond what is possible with a classic "like/dislike" feedback option.
According to a Spotify spokesperson, the prompts are "an opportunity to uncover new tracks or revisit old favorites, or extend a ChatGPT conversation with a soundtrack that fits the moment."
Spotify said the integration is opt-in and that users can disconnect at any time. It also said it will not share music or podcast content with OpenAI for training purposes — addressing industry concerns around AI and copyrighted material.
Spotify also recently rolled out its Prompted Playlist feature inside the streaming music app, a "vibey" feature that allows users to tap into a feeling or memory in order to build a custom mix.
The rival streaming services connected to the big tech players are exploring similar AI features.
Apple has been gradually layering AI into Apple Music. The "Playlist Playground" beta feature is closest to what Spotify is doing, as it also focuses on chat-based AI interaction that allows users to tweak recommendations via chat. Apple recently introduced AutoMix, which uses AI to analyze songs and automatically blend tracks by matching tempo and beats, eliminating silence between songs, adding crossfades and so on. The company has also rolled out machine-learning tools such as lyric translation and pronunciation features.
Amazon Music has offered a prompt-based playlist feature called Maestro since mid-2024, which allows listeners to generate playlists using text descriptions or even emojis. It remains in beta testing rather than full release.
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