Spotify’s AI DJ has me yearning for a Gemini-infused YouTube Music

Case in point: Spotify’s AI DJ became my go-to every time I started a new music session. In case you’ve never used it, the DJ is a relatively new feature that creates a simulated (but personalized) radio station. It analyzes your listening habits to curate a stream of old and new songs. Best of all, an AI voice provides brief commentary about the selections. In my opinion, it’s a fantastic way to discover new music as I’m more likely to connect with unfamiliar tracks after someone introduces them to me.

Now, I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t like everything about Spotify’s AI DJ feature. It has the tendency to repeat songs from my playlists and mix genres almost at random — I could be listening to something melancholic one moment just to have it abruptly switch to an upbeat or electronic track immediately after. It can sometimes feel more like a chaotic playlist than an AI-powered radio station. I’m not alone either — looking at forum posts online, almost everyone agrees that the concept, while very cool, is woefully underbaked. It just doesn’t feel personal enough.

YouTube Music does have a robust recommendation system, but it’s nowhere near as painless. And I can’t help but feel that Google is sitting on untapped potential with all of its generative AI advancements. After all, the company could use its Gemini language models to embrace and extend every single AI feature Spotify has released to date.

Imagine a scenario where, instead of a haphazard playlist, an AI similar to Spotify’s DJ initiates a brief chat at the start of each session. It could ask questions about your current music preferences or mood or even location and tailor-fit the experience accordingly. Common complaints like repetitive tracks can also be fixed if the chatbot can be given custom instructions. What I’m essentially describing is a custom GPT, centered around music and accessible from a music streaming app like YouTube Music.

I’d love nothing more than to open the YouTube Music app, tap an AI button, and say something to the effect of “I’m going out for a run.” Generative AI can then use its reasoning skills to pick out tracks that fit the occasion. And it doesn’t have to end at music selection either — since large language models can understand natural language, I’d be happy to provide feedback on why I skipped certain tracks. Learning that the previous track was too electronic for my tastes, for example, would give the AI so much more context than simply tapping the skip or thumbs-down buttons.

Regardless, if any company has the resources and expertise to pull this off, it’s Google. If they can harness their AI prowess to build a truly personalized and intuitive music experience, YouTube Music could easily become the preferred streaming platform for many, myself included.