Spotify launches AI-driven Running Mode to sync playlists with workout tempo

Spotify’s latest addition, Running Mode, expands the company’s AI-driven personalization by letting premium members create workout playlists matched to specific beats per minute. Accessible through the Fitness hub on the iOS app, the service supplies 25 curated presets that can be further refined by music taste, exercise length, BPM and training method such as interval or steady runs. Users may also enable brief English audio prompts that offer timing cues and encouragement without drowning out the songs.

The rollout begins in the US, UK, Canada, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and Sweden, with a paid subscription required. This release builds on the Prompted Playlists launched last year and revives the concept of the 2015 Spotify Running feature, which automatically adjusted music based on phone-detected pace, whereas the new mode relies on user-defined parameters from the start.