A social layer for peer-driven discovery on Spotify

Spotify's Personalization Unit (PNZ) partnered with a cross-functional team of designers, engineers, and product managers to explore new social and discovery directions that could grow monthly active users and strengthen the platform's personalization ecosystem. Research surfaced a clear tension. Listeners trusted their personal networks more than Spotify's algorithmic recommendations, yet had limited tools to bridge the two.

The team evaluated four feature concepts against Spotify's business objectives before aligning on Spotify Groups, a social listening environment that deepened engagement and discovery. A Group Feed let users share audio content and spark conversations, Group Charts surfaced collective listening trends through personalization algorithms, and a Group Members view offered insight into individual taste profiles.

As the Lead Interaction Designer on the team, I led user research, shaped ideation, and drove design from wireframes through high-fidelity prototypes, aligned with Spotify's design system and brand guidelines. Working alongside engineers and product managers, I connected design decisions to platform growth objectives and kept the vision feasible to build. The engagement culminated in a live, working demo of the Groups feature.