A new AI bot will roast your music taste more than your friends–or Spotify Wrapped–ever could.
If anyone’s ever passed you the aux cord in a car with an unfamiliar group of people, you’re likely familiar with the mini heart attack when you question whether or not your music taste is up to par. To address this anxiety, online publisher The Pudding has crafted an artificial intelligence bot, “How Bad Is Your Spotify,” that will judge what it calls “your awful taste in music.” Think of it as the critical counterpart to the popular Spotify Wrapped feature, which lets listeners take a more celebratory approach to analyzing their musical obsessions.
To make its judgement, The Pudding’s AI bot will ask you to sign into your Spotify account through its website to do a comprehensive search through your music choices (it claims not to alter or share your information). The bot will scan this information, single out the artist you listen to most, and ask questions like, “Do you really listen to that song?” all the while not missing any opportunities to make fun of them, or you, along the way. The platform draws its music knowledge from the likes of Pitchfork reviews, recommendations from record stores and “subreddits you’ve never heard of.”
Photo by Simon Noh on Unsplash
This past year, Spotify users were able to analyze their music taste thanks to the feature “Spotify Wrapped,” which is similar to Pudding’s feature in that they both draw data about your music preferences from your Spotify account to paint a comprehensive picture of your musical tastes. But Spotify Wrapped spares you the judgement that comes with “How Bad is Your Music Taste?” bot, and instead offers listeners a chance to flaunt their personal musical quirks and devotion to their favorite artists.
Those who didn’t get enough judgement from posting their “Spotify Wrapped” by followers on their social media accounts will surely get the side eye from this bot. But hey, even if it’s rude, the feature may save you an, “Are you okay?” from your new friends when Ed Sheeran’s “The A Team,” plays for the third time on your 15-minute car ride.
