Spotify Puts Listeners in Control of Music Recommendations with Modern Taste Profile Tools
Spotify is giving users more agency over their listening experience with new Taste Profile tools, unveiled at South by Southwest (SXSW) on March 13, 2026. These tools allow listeners to understand how Spotify’s algorithms interpret their preferences and directly influence future recommendations.
Understanding Your Taste Profile
The Taste Profile feature provides an algorithmic summary of a user’s listening habits, impacting their homepage, generated playlists, and experiences like Spotify Wrapped. Users can now review and adjust this profile, requesting more or less of specific artists, genres, or even musical “vibes.”
A New Era of Personalization
According to Spotify co-CEO Gustav Söderström, “Taste is not fact. It’s an option.” This philosophy underpins the new feature, empowering users to actively shape their musical journey. The update builds upon Spotify’s existing personalization efforts, including the Prompted Playlist tool (introduced in January 2026) and the AI-powered Spotify DJ, launched in 2023.
Leadership Transition and Focus on Innovation
Söderström and fellow co-CEO Alex Norström assumed their roles in January 2026, following Daniel Ek’s transition to executive chairman at the end of 2025. Both Söderström and Norström are long-time Spotify veterans, with 17 and 15 years of service, respectively. They previously served as co-presidents, with Söderström leading product and technology and Norström overseeing business operations. The pair plan to synchronize their efforts, avoiding siloed teams, and meetings. Söderström has already accelerated Spotify’s product development, with 50 new features and updates released in the past year.
Expanding Beyond Music
Personalization is central to Spotify’s strategy to expand its dominance beyond music into podcasts and audiobooks. The company is actively growing its video podcast offerings through partnerships, such as with Netflix, and is investing in audiobooks and even physical book sales. Spotify currently has 751 million monthly active users, representing approximately 3.5 percent of the global population, with a goal to increase this to 10-15 percent.
Rollout and Availability
The new Taste Profile features will initially be available to Premium listeners in New Zealand in the coming weeks, with broader rollout planned thereafter. Users will have the option to fine-tune their preferences or continue using Spotify as before.