Spotify is streamlining the process for authors to release audiobooks narrated by AI through a new partnership with ElevenLabs. On Thursday, Spotify announced that it will start accepting audiobooks created with ElevenLabs’ advanced AI voice technology, emphasizing the potential of digital narration to broaden the audiobook market.
Previously, Spotify allowed AI-narrated audiobooks but imposed significant restrictions on their distribution. Their audiobook platform, Findaway Voices, only supports recordings from specific partners and requires each submission to be reviewed prior to publication. ElevenLabs stands out as a leading provider of AI voice solutions, which could increase the availability of AI-narrated audiobooks on Spotify.
This partnership enables authors to utilize ElevenLabs to narrate their works in 29 languages, offering a diverse range of synthetic voices. The basic version of ElevenLabs’ service provides 10 minutes of text-to-voice narration each month at no cost, while various premium tiers are available for more extensive use.
To create a typical audiobook of about 500 minutes, authors must subscribe to the Pro plan, which costs $99 per month. Although Spotify acknowledges the significance of human narration, the company also sees digital voices as a means to lower production costs for emerging authors and to revive older titles that may not otherwise receive audiobook adaptations.
Importantly, Spotify will clearly label AI-narrated audiobooks, indicating that they are “narrated by a digital voice” in the book descriptions to inform listeners about the nature of the narration. This move highlights Spotify’s commitment to innovation in the audiobook industry while still valuing the traditional method of human narration.
