Publication Type
Journal Article
Version
publishedVersion
Publication Date
11-2025
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.
Keywords
AI, AI governance, Anthropomorphism, Customer experience (CX), Personalization, Product management, User autonomy
Discipline
Business and Corporate Communications | Marketing | Organizational Behavior and Theory | Technology and Innovation
Research Areas
Marketing
Publication
Journal of Information Technology Teaching Cases
Identifier
10.1177/20438869251395753
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Citation
MUKHERJEE, Anirban.; CHANG, Hannah H.; and WIBOWO, Jonathan.
Managing the personalization paradox: Lessons from Spotify’s AI DJ. (2025). Journal of Information Technology Teaching Cases.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/lkcsb_research/7801
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.1177/20438869251395753
Included in
Business and Corporate Communications Commons, Marketing Commons, Organizational Behavior and Theory Commons, Technology and Innovation Commons