Spotify has begun testing Talk to Spotify, an artificial intelligence-based feature that allows users to create playlists, ask questions about songs, and access their own listening history data using both voice and text.
Spotify has begun testing Talk to Spotify, an artificial intelligence-based feature that allows users to create playlists, ask questions about songs, and access their own listening history data using both voice and text.
The company announced that this new feature will first be available to Premium subscribers. The central proposal is to simplify interaction, allowing the user to converse directly with the platform instead of navigating through various internal functions of the application. The functionality simulates a conversation, where the subscriber can request suggestions, modify music selections, and obtain more details about artists without leaving the application.
According to Spotify, it will be possible to maintain a continuous dialogue to define the content to be played, deepen knowledge about music, and explore podcasts and audiobooks. Talk to Spotify is accessible in the Home and Now Playing sections of the mobile apps. To start the interaction, simply press the microphone icon in search or type a command. Among the supported actions are creating personalized playlists, changing the style of a selection, saving tracks, adding songs to the queue, and tracking singers.
In addition to assisting with track curation, the AI acts as a source of musical information. Through the playback screen, the user can inquire about a specific song, album, or artist. For example, it is possible to ask about the inspiration behind Dua Lipa's album 'Radical Optimism', or identify the genre of a particular track at the time of its release. This conversation can also generate new discoveries, suggesting related artists and providing data on podcasts and audiobooks. Furthermore, the user has access to details of their own journey on the platform, such as the date of first contact with a song or the most recently listened-to styles.
Talk to Spotify is being distributed in beta version to Premium subscribers aged 18 or older in the United States, Ireland, and Sweden. The test operates on Android and iOS devices, starting with English support. Spotify already uses artificial intelligence in other features, such as remixing and generating podcasts on command. With this new test, the company introduces a more conversational way of engaging with the service. Spotify clarified that the function allows for a direct exchange with the platform, enabling the user to learn about their tastes, review their listening history, and dive into podcasts and audiobooks, all within Spotify itself.
Spotify removed approximately half a million plays of the track 'Earrings,' performed by artist Malcolm Todd, after identifying signs of artificial streaming. This correction occurred after the streaming platform conducted an investigation that pointed to evidence of manipulation.
Although cases of using bots to inflate numbers on music services are not new, this incident has a distinct characteristic: the suspicion that the manipulation was connected to the prediction platform Kalshi. There is a possibility that bettors profited from an unlikely success on Spotify.
Platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket offer the ability to bet on various outcomes, including financial results, political decisions, sports, and entertainment events, such as award winners or most-played song rankings. Trader Caleb Davies raised the suspicion that bettors were using bots to artificially increase the streams of specific songs, aiming for gains in bets, with 'Earrings' topping the charts as a cited example.
It is important to note that there is no evidence of the artist's involvement in this episode, and if manipulation occurred, the choice of the song by bettors may have been random. As noted by The Hollywood Reporter, the song was already in the top 5 of daily streams in the United States in previous weeks, but the Financial Times reported a 70% increase in stream volume in a single day.
Davies, who conducted the investigation, calculated that the chance of Todd's song reaching number one spontaneously was 1 in 77 octillion. Due to this low probability, 'Earrings' was only available on Kalshi, not on Polymarket options. This case is not isolated, as the THR mentioned a complaint against an editor of the YouTuber MrBeast's channel in the US for insider trading, where one can bet on details such as the length of the next video.
Davies contacted Spotify, Kalshi, and Polymarket. The streaming service confirmed to Wired that it had found proof of artificial streaming, although it did not detail the objectives of the attempted manipulation. Kalshi stated that it is in communication with Spotify and investigating the matter. Meanwhile, Polymarket highlighted that it was not possible to bet on Malcolm Todd and did not identify signs of manipulation in its analyses of the streams.
Sources cited by THR indicate that Spotify requested Kalshi and Polymarket to remove the streaming platform's logo from their betting websites. Additionally, the music platform decided to implement additional checks before releasing its most-played song charts.
