Product Experience

SoundCloud AI+ enhances the music discovery and creation experience by leveraging artificial intelligence to generate personalized playlists, recommend tracks with high match percentages, and enable users to create AI-powered remixes with customizable parameters including BPM, energy levels, and genre fusion.

Problem Space

Problem Statement

💡How might we help SoundCloud users discover music that truly resonates with their unique tastes while also providing tools for creative exploration of tracks they love?

Problem Background

Since 2020, we've seen a 47% increase in music streaming consumption, yet user feedback indicates growing frustration with discovery algorithms that feel repetitive and lack personalization. Additionally, there's been a 63% rise in interest for remix and music creation tools among casual listeners who don't have professional production skills.

Research Insights

User Pain Points

"Using surveys and user research, we identified three categories of users and conducted 5 in-depth interviews to understand their challenges:

1. Listeners - Users who primarily want to discover new music feel overwhelmed by choice and disappointed with generic recommendations.
2. Creators - Amateur producers who want to experiment with remixing but lack technical skills.
3. Remix Enthusiast - Users who select music based on current activities or emotional states struggle to find appropriate playlists quickly."

Supporting Data

78% of interviewed users reported dissatisfaction with current music recommendation systems, stating they receive too many similar suggestions. 91% of users expressed interest in AI-powered remix tools, with 67% willing to pay a premium for such features.

Feedback

Our preliminary user testing with a diverse group of SoundCloud users found that personalization was the most requested feature, followed closely by simplified remix capabilities that don't require professional audio editing software.

Landing on the Solution

Based on our target users' pain points, we prioritized three core features:

1. AI-Powered Playlists - Personalized collections that adapt to listening patterns and explicit user preferences
2. Match Percentage System - Clear indicators of how well new tracks align with user preferences
3. Simplified Remix Tools - Accessible controls for non-professionals to create custom versions of tracks

Explanation of Solution

After showcasing our high-fidelity prototype to users, we learned that the visual representation of match percentages significantly increased user confidence in trying new music. The remix tool's simplified sliders for BPM and energy level were particularly praised for making music creation accessible.

We implemented a persistent AI button that provides quick access to AI features from anywhere in the app, addressing the need for seamless integration while not overwhelming the core listening experience.

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Mockups

The onboarding experience introduces users to AI+ features through a clean, focused modal that highlights key capabilities without overwhelming users.

The dashboard presents AI-powered playlists alongside personalized remixes with match percentages, creating a unified discovery experience.

The remix interface uses familiar slider controls and chip selections to make music manipulation accessible to non-professionals.

Future Steps

"Based on user feedback during beta testing, we've identified several promising directions:

1. Collaborative AI Playlists - Allowing friends to combine their listening preferences into shared collections
2. Vocal Isolation - Enabling users to create instrumental or vocal-only versions
3. Mood Tracking - Integration with wearables to suggest music based on physiological indicators of mood‍
4. Creator Monetization - Revenue sharing for original artists when AI remixes of their work gain popularity