Brendon Cassidy, CTO and chief scientist at Super Hi-Fi, uses AI to give everyone the experience of a radio station tailored to their unique tastes.
Super Hi-Fi, an AI startup and member of the NVIDIA Inception program, develops technology that produces smooth transitions, intersperses content meaningfully and adjusts volume and crossfade. Started three years ago, Super Hi-Fi first partnered with iHeartRadio and is now also used by companies such as Peloton and Sonos.
Results are showing that users like this personalized approach. Cassidy notes that they tested MagicStitch, one of their tools that eliminates the gap between songs, and found that customers listening with MagicStitch turned on spent 10 percent more time streaming music.
Cassidy’s a veteran of the music industry — from Virgin Digital to the Wilshire Media Group — and recognizes this music experience is finally possible due to GPU acceleration, accessible cloud resources and AI powerful enough to process and learn from music and audio content from around the world.
Key Points From This Episode:
- Cassidy, a radio DJ during his undergraduate and graduate careers, notes how difficult it is to “hit the post” — or to stop speaking just as the singing of the next song begins. Super Hi-Fi’s AI technology is using deep learning to understand and achieve that timing.
- Super Hi-Fi’s technology is integrated into the iHeartRadio app, as well as Sonos Radio stations. Cassidy especially recommends the “Encyclopedia of Brittany” station, which is curated by Alabama Shakes’ musician Brittany Howard and integrates commentary and music.
Tweetables:
“This AI is trying to create a form of art in the listening experience.” — Brendon Cassidy [14:28]
“I hope we’re improving the enjoyment that listeners are getting from all of the musical experiences that we have.” — Brendon Cassidy [28:55]
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