Tag: AI DJ

Responsibly Balancing What Goes Into Your Personalized Recommendations

March 6, 2023

Every month, tens of billions of discoveries happen on Spotify. Personalized recommendations play an important role in our ability to match listeners around the world with the right content, tracks, artists, or creators at the right moment. Behind the scenes, we combine human editorial expertise with a multitude of signals and systems with the aim of providing every listener with a unique and safe experience. 

At Spotify we focus on delivering recommendations that are relevant, encourage diversity in listening, and provide the opportunities for artist and creator discovery. We spoke with Henriette Cramer, Director of Algorithmic Impact, and Amar Ashar, Head of Algorithmic Policy—both members of the Trust & Safety team—for a deeper look at algorithmic impact and safety. 

Why focus on algorithmic impact? 

Henriette: Algorithmically programmed experiences like Discover Weekly, Release Radar, and Made for You Mixes, or even Search, provide opportunities for artists and podcast creators to grow their fan bases. But while machine learning and algorithms enable these really important opportunities, we know we have a responsibility to mitigate unintended harms, ensure we represent a very wide range of global creators on our platform, and understand our impact.

Understanding our algorithmic impact requires extensive internal and external collaboration, and we approach this space through three channels: research, product engagement, and collaboration with external partners. It’s an ever-evolving field, and we’re proactively working with Spotify teams and external stakeholders to continuously improve our approach as we continue to learn. 

What makes Spotify unique, from an algorithmic perspective? 

Amar: People often talk about the “Spotify Algorithm,” but that’s an oversimplification. In fact, Spotify’s personalization is a combination of a variety of algorithms, along with editorial and data curation teams, all contributing to a unique experience for each listener.

Spotify editors play a crucial role within this space by using their expert judgment to curate playlists and help artists find new fans. They also work with algorithms to create highly situational and personalized experiences. We call this “algotorial”—bringing both the editorial and algorithmic worlds together. This collaboration is critical to the Spotify experience. Think of it this way: Algorithms don’t go out to concerts, people do, which is why human expertise is an essential ingredient in our recommendations. 

We just released a new AI DJ that delivers a curated lineup of music alongside commentary around the tracks and artists. How are teams at Spotify working together to make sure the safety of recommendations is prioritized?

Henriette: In general, ensuring we approach Spotify recommendations responsibly requires close coordination between lots of teams across product, policy, legal, and research. We work with each of them to provide guidance that’s reflective of our algorithmic equity and safety goals, and we use various tools, such as algorithmic assessments, that help us identify and solve problems before they happen. 

Spotify’s DJ takes a unique approach by combining Spotify’s personalization technology, generative AI in the hands of music editors, and voice technology. The expertise of our editors is something that’s really important to our philosophy. As we launch new features, we aim for appropriate safety measures and processes to be in place. The product has been tested in a closed environment for a while, and now that we have launched this product as a beta, we’ll continue to study and improve the experience. 

How does your team work with external partners to improve Spotify’s personalized experience?

Amar: Engaging with research communities outside of Spotify is imperative to do our work. That’s why we also continue to share our findings with the wider community, collaborate across sectors, and ensure, as an industry, that we keep learning and evolving existing practices. 

We also work closely with external partners through Spotify’s Safety Advisory Council, which includes an interdisciplinary group of experts who advise us on safety topics and bring expertise on recommendations, responsibility, and safety from a global perspective.

What’s your go-to playlist?  

Amar: Discover Weekly, not only because it’s consistently a great playlist that has introduced me to new artists and genres, but also because I’ve been lucky enough to have worked with the team that’s built this flagship product.   

Henriette: So many! I love editorial playlists like Techno Bunker, Queens of the Blues, or New Orleans Brass to really get into a genre. Since I worked on voice projects in the past, it’s been really nice to play with the new DJ beta and see editorial, tech, and design work shine together as we continue to study how we can use new techniques responsibly.

Spotify Debuts a New AI DJ, Right in Your Pocket

February 22, 2023

"Meet your AI DJ on Spotify" copy next to a phone screen of the AI DJ experience

Personalization is at the heart of what we do at Spotify—just think of fan-favorite playlists like Discover Weekly, or our annual Wrapped campaign. The beauty of these experiences is our ability to deliver the right piece of music for that exact moment in time, and maybe even connect you with your next favorite artist in the process. We’re building on that innovation by harnessing the power of AI in an entirely new way. And today, we’re excited to share that we’re taking our personalization to a whole new level with DJ. 

Ready for a brand-new way to listen on Spotify and connect even more deeply with the artists you love? 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. This feature, first rolling out in beta, will deliver a curated lineup of music alongside commentary around the tracks and artists we think you’ll like in a stunningly realistic voice. 

It will sort through the latest music and look back at some of your old favorites—maybe even resurfacing that song you haven’t listened to for years. It will then review what you might enjoy and deliver a stream of songs picked just for you. And what’s more, it constantly refreshes the lineup based on your feedback. 

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. Think of it as the very best of Spotify’s personalization—but as an AI DJ in your pocket.

How our AI DJ works

To create the DJ we reimagined the way users listen on Spotify. The DJ knows you and your music taste so well that it will scan the latest releases we know you’ll like, or take you back to that nostalgic playlist you had on repeat last year. Never before has listening felt so completely personal to each and every user, thanks to the powerful combination of:

Spotify’s personalization technology, which gives you a lineup of music recommendations based on what we know you like. 

Generative AI through the use of OpenAI 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. 

We have experts in genres who know music and culture inside and out. And no one knows the music scene better than they do. With this generative AI tooling, our editors are able to scale their innate knowledge in ways never before possible.

A dynamic AI voice platform from our Sonantic acquisition that brings to life stunningly realistic voices from text.

To create the voice model for the DJ, we partnered with our own Head of Cultural Partnerships, Xavier “X” Jernigan. Previously, X served as one of the hosts on Spotify’s first (and personalized) morning show, The Get Up. His personality and voice resonated with our listeners and resulted in a loyal following for the podcast. His voice is the first model for the DJ, and we’ll continue to iterate and innovate, as we do with all our products. 

Where to find the DJ

Ready to have the DJ soundtrack your day? It’s rolling out in English starting today for Spotify Premium users in the U.S. and Canada. 

  1. Head to your Music Feed on Home in the Spotify mobile app on your iOS or Android device.
  2. Tap Play on the DJ card.
  3. Let Spotify do the rest! The DJ will serve a lineup of music alongside short commentary on the songs and artists, picked just for you. 
  4. Not feeling the vibe? Just hit the DJ button at the bottom right of the screen to be taken to a different genre, artist, or mood.

At Spotify we’re uniquely positioned to transform audio. We’re always looking for innovative new ways to improve our users’ listening experiences to meet their needs—so stay tuned for more.

*Update May 16, 2023: DJ is now rolling out in the U.K. and Ireland.

*Update August 8, 2023: DJ is now rolling out in 46 more markets around the world.

*Update March 18, 2026: DJ is now available in English and Spanish to Premium users in Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, and Poland.