Spotify’s new AI playlist tool has been dubbed ‘Spotify’s ChatGPT’

Spotify has a new AI tool that will create playlists for users from text prompts.

Users on Androids and iPhones need only type their prompts into a chat — “relaxing music to tide me over during allergy season” or “a playlist that makes me feel like the main character” are two examples of prompts Spotify suggests in its announcement from yesterday — and poof!, a playlist.

Spotify’s hop into AI didn’t come out of nowhere. It launched its AI DJ last year, which picks songs for users to play next based on their listening habits, while providing a little between-track chatter like any good radio DJ should —though the “good” part has been up for debate. The music streaming giant was rumored to be developing AI-generated playlists last fall. The company began quietly testing the feature in December, but that quiet was disturbed when a TikToker accidentally discovered it, calling it “Spotify’s ChatGPT” and spreading the word across social media and news outlets. While Spotify’s expected price hikes starting at the end of April are reportedly due to its audiobooks feature, The Verge’s Jess Weatherbed suggested that its new AI feature could also be a driving factor.

Music streaming rivals are exploring AI, too, but they’re much farther behind. Apple was reportedly looking to use generative AI features on Apple Music as of last year, but further developments have not been reported, and Apple didn’t immediately respond to Quartz’s request for comment. Amazon partnered with an AI music company last year to create AI-generated sleep playlists.

The flipside of AI

The AI tool on Spotify may be a plus for users, but it’s also a final nail in the coffin for human playlist curators who are slowly receding into algorithm music’s selection’s shadow. Spotify’s layoffs last year included people who made playlists, according to Bloomberg. And the rise of its AI features, the algorithm’s progeny, will probably only make things bleaker for those human curators.

Spotify’s announcement came just a week after a group of high-profile musicians including Katy Perry, Nicki Minaj, and Stevie Wonder wrote a letter calling on platforms not to develop or deploy AI music-generated technology. Spotify’s tool is not about AI-generated music, just AI-generated playlists from human-made music. But Spotify still faces hurdles when it comes to moderating AI-made tunes. The company last spring had to take down a hit song that imitated the voices of Drake and The Weeknd.