Algoriddim

Algoriddim’s live DJ mixing and editing app — Djay Pro — has been a standout on iPads, iPhones, and Macs for years, enabling users to slow songs down, speed them up, scratch them, and blur them together with ease. Today, the company is evolving the iOS version of the app with AI features, using a trained neural network to transfer one song’s vocals or rhythms to another in real time.

Djay Pro previously focused on synchronizing the speeds of two different tracks, rebalancing their volume levels or equalization and playing with each song as it “spun” on a virtual turntable. Algoriddim’s new Neural Mix feature goes deeper, isolating and pulling out vocals (a trick best suited to hip-hop tracks) or percussive/harmonic components (ideal for electronic music). DJs can use the AI-powered feature to create background-free a cappella tracks or voice-free instrumentals from existing songs or place one song’s words on another’s background.

Neural Mix’s AI processing is pretty impressive, using deep convolutional networks to simultaneously analyze millions of audio frames per second and render multiple track waveforms or DJ display graphics in real time. Algoriddim suggests it relies on advanced AI chip features found in Apple’s latest iOS devices, including the A12Z Bionic in the 2020 iPad Pro.

The AI feature arrives with 30 Neural Mix-specific commands that can be mapped to MIDI-based DJ hardware accessories, as well as a refreshed user interface that visually separates out vocals, drums, and harmonic components for each track. Djay Pro AI for iOS also includes AI-assisted crossfades and an Automix AI feature that selects vocal elements or rhythmic patterns from songs and transitions them automatically — without the need for user intervention. A version of Automix AI minus the neural networking features has been available in Djay Pro 2 for Macs since late 2017.

Neural Mix is built using Apple’s Core ML and works best with iOS devices containing Apple’s A12 Bionic or later chipsets, as they include dramatically faster AI cores. Users of the existing Djay app for iOS can only upgrade to Djay Pro AI using a $5 monthly or $40 yearly subscription option that provides access to Neural Mix and a library of additional content. The Pro AI subscription is available through Djay version 3.5, which can be downloaded now from the Apple App Store.