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Managing the personalization paradox: Lessons from Spotify’s AI DJ

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: This case study uses Spotify’s AI DJ to examine the “personalization paradox,” where product features designed to deepen user connection can instead cause alienation. An analysis of over 1,400 user comments identifies three core frictions: a perceived loss of user agency, mismanaged expectations for the human-like AI, and a scalability bottleneck that led to repetitive content. Students are placed in the role of a product manager tasked with developing a prioritized roadmap to address these issues, forcing them to grapple with the critical trade-offs between technological capability and user psychology.

Source: Journal of Information Technology Teaching Cases

DOI: 10.1177/20438869251395753

Authors: Anirban Mukherjee, Hannah Hanwen Chang, Jonathan Wibowo

Institutions: Singapore Management University, University of California, Berkeley

Language: English

Topic: AI in Service Interactions

Subfield: Artificial Intelligence

Field: Computer Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funder: Ministry of Education, India

OpenAlex ID: W4415938650