Francois Pachet, a French scientist and expert on music composed by AI, works with Spotify to “focus on making tools to help artists in their creative process,”. Pachet is a leader in AI (Artificial Intelligence) and uses his expertise to turn the tables at Spotify to make AI-composed music.

François Pachet got his Ph.D. and Habilitation from Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC), after an engineer’s degree from Ecole des Ponts et Chaussées. He has been assistant professor in artificial intelligence at UPMC until 1997 when he joined SONY Computer Science Laboratory Paris to conduct research on interactive music listening, composition and performance.

He developed several award-winning technologies such as constraint-based spatialisation, intelligent music scheduling using metadata and systems: MusicSpace, Continuator for interactive music improvisation, and Flow Composer which paved the way for AI-based score composition.

Topics: 

François Pachet primarily focuses on the intersection of artificial intelligence and music. Some of the key topics he discusses include:

1. AI in Music Composition: Pachet explores the application of artificial intelligence in the creative process of music composition. This involves developing algorithms and systems that can generate music autonomously.
2. Creative AI: He delves into the concept of creative artificial intelligence, examining how AI systems can contribute to the creative arts, particularly in the field of music, and the implications for human creativity.
3. Music and Technology: Pachet discusses the evolving relationship between music and technology, exploring how technological advancements, especially in AI, can impact the creation, production, and consumption of music.
4. Human-AI Collaboration in Music: Pachet explores the potential for collaboration between humans and AI in the realm of music creation. This involves understanding how AI tools can augment human creativity and contribute to the collaborative process.
5. Innovation in the Music Industry: Pachet may discuss how AI technologies can drive innovation in the music industry, from content creation to personalized music recommendations and interactive music experiences.
6. Global Accessibility: With the advent of AI, educational resources are no longer confined to traditional classrooms. AI technologies enable learners to access a vast array of educational materials and experiences from anywhere in the world. Online courses, interactive simulations, and virtual classrooms become accessible to a global audience.
7. Personalized Learning: AI facilitates personalized learning experiences by analyzing individual learning styles, preferences, and progress. Adaptive learning platforms can tailor educational content to suit the needs of each learner, ensuring a more efficient and effective learning process.
8. AI Tutors and Assistants: Intelligent tutoring systems powered by AI can provide real-time support to students. These systems can identify areas where a student may be struggling and offer targeted assistance, creating a more dynamic and responsive learning environment.

François Pachet has published intensively in artificial intelligence and computer music. He was elected  EurAI Fellow in 2014 and doctor Honoris Causa of the University of Pernambuco (Brazil) in 2017.

He was Principal Investigator of the Flow Machines ERC-funded project, which produced (with the musician SKYGGE) Daddy’s Car, a song in the style of the Beatles, and Hello World, the first mainstream music album composed with AI.

He is also a musician and has published two music albums (jazz and pop) as composer and performer, as well as an augmented book about the ontogenesis of a musical ear, Histoire d’une Oreille.

His current goal is to build a new generation of tools to assist music creation.

In the media: 
The Artist in the Machine: The bigger picture of AI and creativity 
Time – There’s a Wide-Open Horizon of Possibility.’ Musicians Are Using AI to Create Otherwise Impossible New Songs