According to Tom’s Guide, at the end of 2025, OpenAI announced new features allowing ChatGPT to interact directly with major apps, including Spotify. This integration lets users create fully-formed Spotify playlists from scratch using conversational prompts within the chatbot. The feature is designed to handle vague or complex requests, like making a playlist for a specific mood or event. The author tested it for weeks, finding it useful for scenarios like dinner parties, road trips, or discovering new artists similar to your favorites. Prompts can ask for a specific number of songs or even request an analysis of your personal listening history to generate recommendations.
The good, the bad, and the abstract
So, here’s the thing. This feature is genuinely cool for discovery. Asking it to analyze your recent listening history and explain why it’s suggesting a new artist? That feels like a superpower. It’s moving beyond a simple algorithm into something that can articulate a vibe. And the abstract prompts—like “make a playlist that feels like a rainy day in a warm house”—are where AI can really shine. It’s not just matching genres; it’s trying to capture a feeling, which is what music is all about.
But it’s not perfect. The article notes that when asked for a high-energy running playlist with a specific build-up, the first result was a “slight mess.” We’ve all been there with auto-generated playlists, right? A random slow song kills your momentum. The takeaway is you might need to refine your prompt or just try again. It’s generative, not omniscient. Sometimes it gets the “vibe” perfectly, and sometimes it throws a melancholic indie ballad into your cardio mix.
Why this matters beyond playlists
Look, this is about more than just avoiding bad workout tunes. This Spotify integration is a concrete step into the “AI agent” future we keep hearing about. Instead of you opening the Spotify app, searching, and building a playlist manually, you’re just telling a chatbot what you want in plain English. The AI handles the app interaction. That’s a fundamental shift in how we use software.
And it raises big questions. If ChatGPT becomes the primary interface for music discovery, what happens to Spotify’s own homepage and recommendation algorithms? Does this make Spotify stronger by keeping you engaged, or does it make OpenAI the gatekeeper? For now, it’s a powerful feature for users. But you have to wonder who really “owns” the customer relationship in this setup. The company with the app, or the company with the AI interface?
Basically, it’s a glimpse of a world where you don’t use apps—you use an AI that uses apps for you. The success hinges entirely on how well that AI understands you. Based on this test, it’s getting there, but it’s still learning. Just maybe don’t trust it with your marathon soundtrack on the first try.
You can follow Tom’s Guide for more up-to-date tech news and reviews by adding them as a preferred source on Google News.
