Some Spotify Users Can Now Personalize Their Algorithm

On Wednesday (Dec. 10), Spotify announced it will now allow users to personalize their algorithm.

“Imagine a Spotify that doesn’t just passively learn from you but literally listens to you,” a company blog post reads. “For the first time, your ideas, your logic and your creativity can actually power the Spotify algorithm, directing how it thinks, adapts and responds to you.”

As part of the rollout, the blog post introduces a feature called the “Prompted Playlist,” which will first roll out in beta to premium users in New Zealand on Thursday (Dec. 11.) Essentially, this lets users use AI to generate a playlist — a similar concept to Spotify’s recent integration with ChatGPT to allow for prompt-based music and podcast recommendations.ree

“You could ask for ‘music from my top artists from the last five years,’ then push it further with ‘and feature deep cuts I haven’t heard yet,’” the blog post continues. “Or you could request ‘high-energy pop and hip-hop for a 30-minute 5K run that keeps a steady pace before easing into relaxing songs for a cool-down,’ and layer on something like ‘include music from this year’s biggest films and most-talked-about TV shows that match my taste.’ You choose how broad or specific you want to go.”

From there, users can “fine-tune the results by editing the prompt or start fresh whenever you want.” Each song included in the playlist will include descriptions and context to tell the user why Spotify selected that song, “so the playlist feels alive and crafted specifically for your prompt and your taste.”

This can refresh on a periodic basis — daily or weekly — and Spotify refers to the feature as a way to “curate your next Discover Weekly.” For those who don’t know what to prompt, there will be an “ideas” button that helps select prompts for the user.

News of the feature arrives just weeks after Instagram announced the launch of a somewhat similar feature, allowing “for you to tune your algorithm on Instagram by adding and removing topics based on your interests,” Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri wrote on Threads.

The Spotify blog post says this launch “is just the beginning of a new phase [of Spotify] where listeners take the lead and make even more of every minute,” noting that there’s more to come in 2026.