Tag: Voice

Spotify to Acquire Sonantic, an AI Voice Platform

June 13, 2022

Spotify and Sonantic logos

As a leader in all things audio, Spotify is always searching for new ways to create unique experiences that our users will love. So today we’re excited to share our intention to acquire Sonantic, a dynamic AI voice platform that creates compelling, nuanced, and stunningly realistic voices from text. 

Listeners come to Spotify for all of the best audio content in the world—and we believe that Sonantic’s technology will allow us to create high-quality experiences for our users by building on our existing technical capabilities. 

“We’re really excited about the potential to bring Sonantic’s AI voice technology onto the Spotify platform and create new experiences for our users,” says Ziad Sultan, Spotify’s Vice President of Personalization. “This integration will enable us to engage users in a new and even more personalized way.”

“We’re looking forward to joining Spotify and continuing to build exciting voice experiences,” said Sonantic co-founders Zeena Qureshi and John Flynn in a joint statement. “We believe in the power voice has and its ability to foster a deeper connection with listeners around the world, and we know we can be better than ever on the world’s largest audio platform.”

At Spotify, we’ve identified several potential opportunities for text-to-speech capabilities across our platform, and we believe that over the long term, high-quality voice will be important to growing our share of listening. For example, this voice technology could allow us to give context to users about upcoming recommendations when they aren’t looking at their screens. Using voice in these moments can reduce barriers to creating new audio experiences—and open up the doors to even more new opportunities.

5 Things to Know About the New ‘Hey Spotify’ Feature

April 9, 2021

We know that Spotify listeners crave audio at every moment—including when they’re busy or on-the-go. And when it comes to tasks like cooking, exercising, or running an errand, sometimes your hands are tied. So we set out to develop a new voice-controlled experience called “Hey Spotify,” to make it easier for our users to start, navigate, and search for their music and podcasts—without using their hands. 

This new feature, built within an existing user experience listeners have come to know and love, unlocks a truly mobile and versatile way for users to enjoy voice-controlled access to the personalized Spotify experience, anytime, anywhere. 

Read on for five things to know about the new “Hey Spotify” voice experience. 

  1. It’s up to you to turn it on… Go to Search, tap the mic icon, and give Spotify permission to record audio or access your microphone. Once that’s enabled, say “Hey Spotify” to ask for music and podcasts, control playback, and more. 
  2. …Or turn it off: Simply tap the gear icon to go to Settings, then tap “Voice interactions.” You can turn off “Hey Spotify” or tap mic permissions to disable the voice feature completely.
  3. No more Search parties: ‘Hey Spotify’ means that you can access Spotify Voice from anywhere in the app, so you no longer have to go through the Search tab to access the voice feature. Simply say a phrase like “Hey Spotify, play my Daily Drive,” to instantly hear the mix. 
  4. It’s easier to listen to what you like: You can ask Spotify directly to play countless songs, artists, moods, and genres—from the artist you’ve listened to for years to a new track you can’t get out of your head. Even if you’ve forgotten the name of a specific song, just asking Spotify to play a particular artist or genre will get you to music you’ll love. Or, if you’re in the mood for podcasts, jump back into your latest listening binge by asking us for your favorite shows. 
  5. When you say, “Hey Spotify…” the app will begin picking up what you say, and continue only until it’s processed your question or request. Plus, Spotify will always indicate—with an in-app visual or audio tone—when it is receiving your voice input. The rest of the time, the app listens for “Hey Spotify” in short, few-second snippets that are deleted if you don’t say it. 

“Hey Spotify” recently started rolling out to some listeners in the U.S. across iOS and Android devices, with more to follow over the next few weeks.

Want to Start a Podcast? Hear How From Anchor Podcasters

April 2, 2020

Always wanted to host and produce your own podcast? While it may feel like a significant undertaking, there are plenty of tools that can help—and podcast experts who are ready to guide you along the way.

Anchor, the podcasting platform Spotify acquired in 2019, provides easy-to-use creative tools, free content hosting, and distribution to listening platforms, including Spotify. Since its creation, Anchor has enabled people all over the world to broadcast their voices.

Looking for additional guidance and inspiration on starting your podcast? Well, look no further than Anchor’s How I Podcast series, where podcasters deep dive into their processes and best practices. Check out this roundup of great advice from Anchor creators Ashley Smith and Kristy Brannon, Evan Pricco and Doug Gillen, Aaron Bernstein, and Alex and Christine Schiefer.

From Three New Podcasts to Sound Up 2020, Here’s What’s New on the Podcast Front in Australia

February 27, 2020

With podcast listening on the rise, there’s all the more reason to be excited about what’s coming out of Australia. On February 27, we unveiled a slate of original and exclusive content, as well as the return of Spotify’s Sound Up Australia, our five-day residential podcasting workshop that helps to elevate and amplify First Nations’ voices. 

At Spotify Australia HQ, we announced three new podcasts: Spotify original sex and relationship podcast Search Engine Sex, hosted by Sound Up alumni Rowdie Walden; the second season of VICE Extremes, hosted by Julian Morgans; and the weekly youth news podcast Generation Betoota. This lineup marks the first of many anticipated announcements to come out of Australia.

“Our goal is to become the number one audio platform in the world, providing the best in audio content—customized and accessible, on demand everywhere,” said Cecilia Qvist, Spotify’s Global Head of Markets. “The role our global markets play in this expansion is pivotal and we look forward to making many more announcements in this space.” 

According to Edison Research and Triton Digital (2019), the number of weekly Australian podcast listeners increased by 50% over the last three years, an exciting indicator of steady growth in the world of podcasts. To celebrate the launch of these shows, here’s what Rachel Corbett, head of podcasts at “Mamamia”; Clancy Overell, editor and host of “The Betoota Advocate”; Julian Morgans; and Rowdie Walden have to say about the growth of podcasts and the need for more indigenous voices.

When did you start to notice an uptick in podcast listening in Australia?

Julian: Podcasting seemed to go mainstream around four to five years ago. Remember when Serial became a big deal? I think that was a turning point.

Clancy: The first time I noticed a boost in podcast listening was almost 10 years ago, when Ricky Gervais and Karl Pilkington were making waves all the way to rural Australia. From that point I feel like everyone has liked the idea of podcasts.

Why do you think more Aussies are tuning into podcasts now than ever?

Julian: I just think public awareness has hit critical mass. For a while I used to tell friends about podcasts, and they’d be like, “How do you listen to these things?” That doesn’t happen anymore. Also, you can listen to a podcast while doing something else. That’s a big plus.

Rachel: You don’t have to have your bum on the couch to follow a true crime story or hear the latest news. You can be walking your dog, doing the shopping or driving your car. I think this, coupled with the continued improvement in audio quality, has made taking time to listen to a podcast feel like self-care; and when people feel like consuming your content is a “treat,” that keeps them coming back.

How important are Indigenous voices to audio experiences?

Rowdie: Podcasting is such a fast-growing industry that it’s important we keep the push for diversity and inclusion in this space as well. It’s incredibly white, and as the oldest storytellers, it’s important we have representation in this space. While Search Engine Sex isn’t what you’d think of when you think “Indigenous podcast,” it’s important to show that we can exist in other spaces. Black voices can be mainstream.

Learn more about how Spotify is continuing to amplify First Nations’ voices through Sound Up Australia.