Wrapped helps Spotify add users despite artists criticism over fees

It highlighted its “Spotify Wrapped” feature for engaging users.

“Our 11th annual Wrapped was bigger, bolder and more layered than ever, celebrating fans, artists, creators and authors around the world,” it said in its results. “Wrapped had more than 300 million engaged users and more than 630 million shares on social media globally in 56 languages”.

Chief executive Gustav Söderström said the firm considered itself the research and development department of the music industry, by focussing on new developments in audio, such as adding video to podcasts, and embracing music made by artificial intelligence (AI).

“Our job is to understand new technologies quickly and capture their potential, which we’ve done time and again,” he said. “The entire industry stands to benefit from this [AI] paradigm shift but we believe those who embrace this change and move fast, will benefit the most.”

But the latest revenue figures come as a heated debate continues about how much money artists and songwriters receive in royalties. Various artists boycotted a Spotify party in 2025, and Taylor Swift famously refused to put her work on the platform for three years because the platform didn’t pay enough.