Have you got the AI Factor? Robots can now identify a hit... so Simon Cowell may have to watch out!

Music moguls like Simon Cowell may find their days are numbered. Artificial intelligence can now identify a surefire hit with almost 100 per cent accuracy, a study has found. Simply asking people which songs they liked best is a terrible way to identify a hit, researchers found, after recruiting 33 volunteers to listen to 24 recent songs. But interpreting their brain signals, then getting AI to interpret the results, can distinguish a hit song or a flop with 97.2 per cent accuracy. The AI can spot a hit with an impressive 82 per cent accuracy after hearing only one minute of the song. Its results were checked against the modern definition of a hit - whether a song was listened to on internet streaming services more than 700,000 times.