Spotify Teases Advanced AI-Powered Conversational Interface for Enhanced User Experience

Spotify hints at a more chatty voice AI interface in the future | TechCrunch

Spotify has experimented with various voice interfaces in the past, and more recently, added an AI DJ that introduces tunes the company thinks you'll like and lets you make your own requests. Now, Spotify is teasing that generative AI advances may pave the way for an even more conversational interface with the streaming service in the future, according to comments made during Spotify's second-quarter earnings call with investors on Tuesday. Asked about how AI was affecting its business, Spotify Chief Product and Technology Officer Gustav Söderström noted that consumers today are able to talk to Spotify in plain English to request music, allowing the company to associate which phrases connect with which songs. "You can think of it as us getting a new dataset," he said. "Spotify's got this unique data set from all of its playlists, which was really song-to-song -- like which song goes well with another song, kind of the Amazon 'people who bought this also bought that,'" he said. Meanwhile, the voice interface is delivering new insights to the company. "And that's completely new to us, and it's a very, very valuable data set that we are collecting very quickly," he added. As a result, the exec says we can expect Spotify's consumer experiences to get "much more interactive." "You can already write to Spotify, talk to Spotify. You're just going to see that expand," Söderström said. Plus, AI technology would allow Spotify to do more than just predict what someone might want to listen to, whether music, podcasts, or audiobooks, as it does today. Instead of only making predictions, it would be able to "reason" over the user's listening history and what they said to the AI DJ. The reference to reasoning suggests that Spotify is looking toward AI reasoning models that can perform more complex tasks across multiple steps. The voice data in question comes from Spotify's AI DJ feature. In May 2025, Spotify introduced a way for Premium subscribers to make voice requests to the English-language AI DJ by pressing a button in the app. This lets users change the music, the genre, or the mood of a playlist using a voice command. Consumer features aren't the only way Spotify is leveraging AI. During the call, the exec also mentioned that Spotify is using generative AI internally to more rapidly prototype products and create efficiencies in other areas of its business, like finance. In the quarter, Spotify hit 276 million paying subscribers, up 12% year-over-year, and 696 million monthly active users, but swung to a loss after missing revenue targets. The stock fell 10% on weak guidance and Spotify CEO Daniel Ek's comments about his unhappiness with the company's ads business.

Spotify's AI DJ is just the beginning of a bigger AI plan

Spotify is exploring a more advanced, conversational AI interface, building upon its previous forays into voice interaction, including the AI DJ feature. The exploration stems from observations shared during Spotify's second-quarter earnings call with investors on Tuesday. Executives suggested future generative AI advancements could enable the streaming service to offer a significantly enhanced user experience. Gustav Söderström, Spotify's Chief Product and Technology Officer, addressed the impact of AI on the company's operations. He emphasized that users can currently interact with Spotify in natural language to request music. This capability allows Spotify to gather data connecting specific phrases with particular songs, creating a valuable dataset. Söderström elaborated on the nature of this dataset, comparing it to Amazon's recommendation system. He noted that Spotify previously relied on playlist data, which showed song-to-song relationships, similar to Amazon's "people who bought this also bought that" recommendations. The voice interface, however, provides entirely new insights. "You can think of it as us getting a new dataset," he said. "Spotify's got this unique dataset from all of its playlists, which was really song-to-song -- like which song goes well with another song, kind of the Amazon 'people who bought this also bought that,'" he said. He added, "And that's completely new to us, and it's a very, very valuable dataset that we are collecting very quickly." Spotify removes AI-generated tracks impersonating deceased artists Söderström indicated that these data collection efforts would lead to more interactive consumer experiences. He explained, "You can already write to Spotify, talk to Spotify. You're just going to see that expand." The integration of AI technology could enable Spotify to move beyond predicting user preferences for music, podcasts, and audiobooks. Instead of simply making predictions, the AI could "reason" based on a user's listening history and interactions with the AI DJ. The concept of "reasoning" implies that Spotify is considering AI reasoning models capable of executing more complex, multi-step tasks. The voice data utilized for these potential advancements originates from Spotify's AI DJ feature. First introduced in May 2025, this feature allows Premium subscribers to make voice requests to the English-language AI DJ using an in-app button. Users can verbally request changes to the music, genre, or mood of a playlist. Beyond consumer-facing features, Spotify is also leveraging generative AI internally. Söderström mentioned that the company is using this technology to accelerate product prototyping and improve efficiency in other areas of its business, including finance. During the reported quarter, Spotify achieved 276 million paying subscribers, marking a 12% year-over-year increase. The platform also reached 696 million monthly active users. Despite these gains, Spotify experienced a loss after failing to meet revenue targets. Consequent to weak guidance and Spotify CEO Daniel Ek's remarks regarding dissatisfaction with the company's ad business, the company's stock value decreased by 10%.

Spotify's AI DJ is About to Get a Whole Lot Smarter

As a result, Spotify's AI DJ is set to become even more interactive, generating more personalized music recommendations. Spotify's AI experience is about to get "much more interactive," as the music streaming giant might introduce advanced models that can "reason" with users over their song preferences. The company just held its second quarter earnings call, where Spotify Chief Product and Technology Officer Gustav Söderström teased some AI advancements coming to the Spotify app. He discussed the new and improved AI DJ that takes requests. The executive noted that people are having conversations with the AI DJ, helping the company learn what phrases relate to which type of songs. Söderström explained that the voice interactions are offering Spotify a completely new dataset, which is unique and very valuable. That is why the company is collecting the data, and it could help the future experience with the AI getting "much more interactive". Söderström noted, "You can already write to Spotify, talk to Spotify. You're just going to see that expand." This new voice dataset wouldn't just allow Spotify to learn what songs, podcasts, or audiobooks the user might listen to next, but also carry out more advanced reasoning that will somehow reflect in the app. This could be a game changer going forward, but it will depend on how Spotify delivers the feature for everyone given that AI DJ is still absent for a lot of regions globally. But I would like to hear from you guys. Would you like a chatty AI DJ in your music app? Let us know in the comments below.