The platform will be driven by machine learning and will support podcast creation and streaming.
YEREVAN, Armenia, Nov. 4, 2020 /CNW/ — Podcastle, a company developing podcast creation tools for amateur and professional podcasters and a streaming platform for listeners, today announced their $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.
“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,” said Podcastle’s Founder, Artavazd Yeritsyan, a former VP of Engineering at PicsArt.
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.
“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,” said Ben Yu, Managing Partner at Sierra Ventures.
About Podcastle
Podcastle is a powerful text-to-speech converter that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to convert news into podcasts in seconds. The podcasts generated using Podcastle are very human-like and consider all the emotions and the writer’s tone of voice. In addition to listening technology, the Podcastle team is also working on developing an accessible tool for audio content creation. Podcastle’s team believes that entering into the podcasting game shouldn’t have any barriers and should be easy for everyone. Learn more at podcastle.ai
About Sierra Ventures
Sierra Ventures is a Bay Area-based, early-stage venture firm investing globally with a focus on Next Generation Enterprise and Emerging Technologies. With over three decades of experience and over $2 billion of assets under management, Sierra has created a vast network of successful entrepreneurs, Global 1000 CXOs, operational executives, and deep domain experts, providing a platform for entrepreneurs around the world. Learn more at sierraventures.com.
Media Contact:
Artavazd Yeritsyan
Email: arto@podcastle.ai
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