Apple Buys Asaii To Improve Apple Music Recommendations

Apple has acquired streaming analytics startup Asaii to bolster Apple Music. First word of the deal came when Asaii founder and CEO Sony Theakanath changed his Linkedin to reflect his employment at Apple Music.

Without explanation, the startup announced it was shutting down in September, with an acquisition rumored. The deal, which appears to have been consummated last month, is valued at under $100 million. 

Prior to the acquisition, the startup offered two main products: "a music management dashboard for A&Rs to quickly scout and manage talent and an API for services to integrate a recommendation engine into their platforms." 

How Will Apple Music Use Asaii Tech?

While the acquisition has now been confirmed, no firm details of how Apple Music plans to use its newly acquired tech have emerged. Speculation centers around improved Apple Music discovery and recommendations, which many believe lags behind Spotify. 

But Apple Music could also integrate Asaii's A&R platform which purports to "quickly identify future and budding hits."  Apple Music's major label partners could benefit from access, but so could the many independent artists and smaller labels on the platform.

Apple Music has lagged behind Spotify and Pandora in offering tools that help artists grow and communicate with their fans.  Offering improved analytics and predictive technologies could help Apple catch up there, as well.