Behind the Numbers: an EMARKETER Podcast What Will Spotify Do About AI Slop? Will Podcasts Catch On in Living Rooms? And More — The 3 Big Questions for Spotify | Behind the Numbers
Mar 6, 2026
Daniel Konstantinovic, senior editor who covers advertising and platform strategy, and Ross Benes, senior analyst focused on streaming and ad trends. They tackle Spotify’s AI-generated music problem. They dig into whether ads can match subscriptions. They debate if podcasts will become big-screen living room entertainment and Spotify’s video, audiobook, and pricing moves.
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AI Music Will Arrive But Bring Quality Risk
- Spotify will likely accept some AI-generated music because it increases cheap content and time spent on the platform.
- Ross Benes warns this invites lots of low-quality 'AI slop' and risks degrading user experience and label relationships if unmanaged.
Fake AI Artists Already Game The Charts
- Fake artists and AI-created releases have already climbed Spotify charts and been removed, showing detection and moderation are messy.
- Daniel Konstantinovic notes Spotify's internal AI push for features contrasts with unclear policy on AI content moderation.
Podcast Ads Haven't Moved The Needle Yet
- Spotify leans on podcasts to grow ad business but podcast ads remain a small slice of digital ad spend.
- Daniel highlights Spotify opened programmatic buying, yet ad revenue declined year‑over‑year this quarter.