Digital music service provider, Spotify has introduced a new AI powered DJ feature with realistic voice allowing users to have personalized music experience.
According to the company, the OpenAI powered feature is still in beta testing and only available in English for its premium subscribers in the US and Canada.
For years, Spotify has been a market leader with its personalized technology, launching its flagship playlist Discover Weekly back in 2015 to immediate success.
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Next were several other playlists that were designed to cater to the end user’s unique taste. These include Release Radar, Daily Mixes, Your Time Capsule, Blend, and others designed for specific activities like working out or commuting.
Spotify also became a trendsetter in more recent years with its annual review – Spotify Wrapped, which rivals have since copied.
According to the company, the latest feature will sort through the latest music and look back at some of the user’s old favorites – maybe even resurfacing that song one has not listened to for year.
A DJ in your pocket
Just like a radio DJ, Spotify’s DJ feature delivers a curated selection of music with AI-powered spoken commentary about the songs, and artists that a user likes.
Spotify says it is putting an “AI DJ in your pocket.” The company has indicated the new DJ feature is a combination of its existing personalization technology, an AI voice from its 2022 Sonatic acquisition and generative AI through the use of OpenAI technology.
Meanwhile, the DJ’s voice is based on the company’s Head of Cultural Partnerships, Xavier “X” Jernigan. Previously, X served as one of the hosts for Spotify’s morning show podcast – The Get Up. His personality and voice, according to Spotify, resonated with listeners, which resulted in a loyal following for the podcast.
“The DJ is a personalized AI guide that knows you and your music taste so well that it can choose what to play for you,” said Spotify in a statement.
“If you’re not feeling the vibe, just tap the DJ button and it will switch it up. The more you listen and tell the DJ what you like (and don’t like), the better its recommendations get.
How does the DJ work?
The company reimagined the way users listen to music on Spotify through the company’s personalization technology, which gives a line-up of music recommendations based on user’s interests.
Through generative AI using OpenAI’s technology, “We put this in the hands of our music editors to provide you with insightful facts about the music, artists, or genres you’re listening to. The expertise of our editors is something that’s really important to our philosophy at Spotify.”
With the generative AI tooling, editors are able to scale their innate knowledge in “ways never before possible.”
Not everyone is happy with Spotify
Despite being a trendsetter in many ways, some users are disgruntled with the innovations.
Tech journalist Sarah Perez says the latest feature has come at a time there has been criticism that the company’s investment in other audio formats made its app cluttered.
Responding to the company’s Twitter announcement, some users expressed disappointment for not accessing the latest feature although Spotify indicated it’s currently available for premium users in US and Canada.
“Meanwhile in Sweden with no features,” responded Ayman. Another user identified as Crazy Good Dude said: “Updated the app and I can’t see it either, checked everywhere.”
Other users feel the company is chewing more than they can swallow.
“Two years and still no Hi-Fi,” replied another user in reference to delays in introduction of the company’s Spotify HiFi tier, which it announced in 2021.
“But as Spotify’s early advances in personalization technology are now seemingly table stakes for any music service, it’s clear it wanted to now set the bar even higher by doing something new with AI that’s not easily reproducible,” said Perez.
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