For years, Spotify's recommendation engine has felt like a mind reader. It quietly tracks what you play, skip, save, and replay, then serves up Discover Weekly, Release Radar, and an endless stream of algorithmically generated playlists designed to know your taste better than you know it yourself.

With its new feature, Prompted Playlist, Spotify is experimenting with a different idea: What if users didn't just receive recommendations, but actively shaped them?

Prompted Playlist, now launching for Spotify users in the U.S., is a new way to create playlists using personalized prompts, allowing listeners to guide Spotify's algorithm with greater intent and context. Instead of starting with a blank playlist or relying entirely on automated suggestions, users can describe what they want and let Spotify build from there.

It's a subtle shift, but one built around the idea of less passive consumption and more collaboration.