AI News Monitor

As artificial intelligence reshapes industries across the globe, Daniel Ek, the founder and chief executive of Spotify, is embracing the technology as a catalyst for creativity rather than a threat to human artistry.

Speaking to reporters during an Open House event at Spotify’s Stockholm headquarters this week, Mr. Ek projected a future where AI becomes a powerful tool that lowers the barriers to music creation and inspires a new wave of artists.

“I’m mostly optimistic and mostly very excited because we’re just in the beginning of understanding this future of creativity that we’re entering,” he said.

His comments arrive amid ongoing scrutiny over the role of AI in the music industry. A recent investigation by the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter and the book Mood Machine alleged that Spotify had commissioned producers to release thousands of tracks under fictitious AI artist names—music that was then promoted on the platform’s own playlists. The move, critics say, could undercut real artists by circumventing higher royalty payments.

Spotify has denied the accusations.

“We want real humans to make it as artists and creators,” Mr. Ek said. “But what is creativity in the future with AI? I don’t know. What is music?”

He pointed to historical examples—such as electronic dance music, DJ culture, and hip hop sampling—that were once dismissed as inauthentic forms of art, arguing that innovation in how music is made has long been met with skepticism.

“Mozart had to compose entire symphonies in his head,” Mr. Ek noted. “Now, any one of us can probably create a beat in five or 10 minutes. The tools that we now have in our availability are just staggering.”

While acknowledging that AI presents “very scary potential applications,” he emphasized the upside: a surge in accessible creative power. “The amount of creativity that creative people will have at their fingertips is going to be insane,” he said. “More and more people will create.”

Mr. Ek characterized the rise of AI in music not as a disruption, but as part of a natural progression. “I see this much more as an evolution than a revolution,” he said.

Spotify, which reported its first annual profit in 2024, ended March with 678 million active users, including 268 million paying subscribers. With 100 million paying users in Europe alone, Mr. Ek said he envisions a future with over a billion subscribers globally.

“I don’t think there’s any doubt in my mind that the potential for Spotify at some point is to eventually get to over a billion paying subscribers,” he said.