After a beta version where only 5,000 people had a chance to use the software, Aimi’s iOS and Android app is now available to everyone. The launch brings the company’s generative music platform to mobile devices, where it was previously unavailable. Engadget’s James Trew has been using the app since January. Since then, Aimi has made some adjustments to the user interface.
What hasn’t changed is the premise of the app. As before, Aimi relies on continuous musical “experiences” that you can subtly modify by interacting with a handful of interface elements. If you’re familiar with platforms like Endel and Brain.fm, you probably know what you’re getting yourself into. You can tap the thumbs up and down buttons to guide Aimi’s algorithm. There’s also a shuffle button if a section you don’t like at all comes up. With today’s release, Aimi will also ask you to indicate whether you want to listen to a section more or less frequently, as well as for longer or shorter periods of time.
Previously, Aimi had planned to offer a $10 per month premium tier that would have included additional controls. During the recent beta, the company decided to make those controls free for all users. First, a “Section” view allows you to isolate individual elements of a musical composition, including parts like harmony and melody, and adjust the gain and tell Aimi if she likes what she’s hearing. An additional “Composition” interface lets you shape what she’s listening to by adjusting a set of four sliders. For example, by moving the “Progression” slider, you can tell Aimi to change the experience she’s listening to more or less frequently. Meanwhile, the “Intensity” and “Texture” sliders let you control the amount of effects Aimi employs and whether a composition sounds organic or synthetic. Last but not least, there is a Vocals slider that is self-explanatory.
The launch of a mobile app is part of a larger plan by Aimi to bring more people into the world of generative music. Later this year, the company plans to launch Aimi Studio, which will allow users to take a more hands-on approach to creating their own compositions. “One of the strengths of generative music is that we can use it to engage casual listeners with ongoing music experiences and then introduce them to interactive music allowing them to take ownership of their music experience,” Aimi CEO Edward Balassanian told Engadget. beginning of the year.
Update 11:01 AM ETNote: A previous version of this article stated that Aimi planned to charge $10 per month for additional controls. During the recent beta version of the app, Aimi decided to offer those features for free for now.
