Armenian AI startup Podcastle raises $1.75m seed round to create next-gen podcast platform

Armenian AI startup Podcastle raises $1.75m seed round to create next-gen podcast platform

Published: 05-11-2020 14:37:00 | By: Pie Kamau | hits: 21541 | Tags:

Podcastle, a company developing podcast creation tools for amateur and professional podcasters and a streaming platform for listeners, announced a $1.75 million seed funding led by Sierra Ventures, with participation from Andrew Ng's AI Fund and Correlation VC. This investment brings the total amount raised by Podcastle to $2 million

Artavazd YeritsyanPodcastle's Founder and former VP of Engineering at PicsArt said: "We raised this round to invest in developing a new podcast creation and discovery platform that will empower everyone to have their voice heard without barriers and redefine how podcasting is perceived today. Our investors are a perfect match with Podcastle's DNA, and we are looking forward to partnering with them."

After a successful launch four months ago and organic user growth in the U.S., Podcastle will be launching new podcast creation features to make the creation and streaming of interactive audio content even more accessible and fun.

Podcastle believes podcasts will continue to be a primary medium for sharing content - with nearly one-third (104M) of Americans listening to podcasts at least once a month, according to Edison Research. Podcastle is positioned to address the growing demand for high-quality podcasts by lowering the barrier to podcast creation and allowing creators to tell stories in the voices and language that's right for their content and audience.

Initially starting as a browser extension that uses AI to narrate articles with natural-sounding speech, Podcastle has plans to grow its offering to support the full lifecycle of podcast creation and consumption. The extension will eventually play a small role in its larger platform. Podcastle's in-house, text-to-speech and transcribing technology continue to be product features. 

Ben Yu, Managing Partner at Sierra Ventures said: "With its AI tech, strong product vision, fast execution, and demonstrated dedication to user success, we believe that Podcastle is strongly positioned to serve the growing podcasting market and its needs."

podcastle.ai