As the bags zip, the emails are sent, and the coffee brews – I wanted to take some time to reflect on yet another amazing Podcast Movement. While there was a lot to see and do, one theme in particular really stood out to me: AI in podcasting.
Just over a year ago, we saw AI come into the fold, and in that short time, some profound changes came into effect. AI is constantly maturing and, with that, improving the way we work and create.
In this post, I will explore some of those changes. I will discuss how AI can improve your podcasting workflow, help you save time by reducing workload, and help to foster creativity. I will also address some ethical concerns surrounding AI in podcasting while highlighting some fantastic AI tools podcasters use.
How to use AI
AI is a tool. And, like any tool, there are many things you can use it for to create, improve, and reduce work.
Below are some of the top use cases for AI in podcasting.
1. Podcast transcription and podcast video captioning
Transcriptions are “good, useful things” and essential to Podcasting 2.0. Podcast transcripts ensure everyone can enjoy and consume podcasts. They are especially useful for members of the hearing-impaired community and non-native listeners. Podcast transcripts help increase comprehension and accessibility—even considering situations and environments—so that all podcasts can be enjoyed at any time and place.
Outside of the “what,” AI is helping to make transcripts more accessible to creators. Traditionally, podcasters would either need to write the show script manually, pay for white-glove service, or rely on service providers to transcribe content automatically.
While these are options for obtaining podcast transcripts, they could be more optimal. Why? These methods can be time-consuming, costly, and riddled with disfluencies.
- Time-consuming: Unless you are reading from a pre-drafted script, manual transcription is a huge time suck for most podcasters. On average, transcribing a podcast manually takes 2 hours and 15 minutes. (Stat achieved by multiplying average words per minute spoken, 150 words, by the average length of a podcast episode, 36 minutes, and divided by the average number of words typed per minute, 40 words.)
- Expensive: Typical white-glove podcast transcription services charge between $1.50 and $2.50 per minute spoken. Podcasters should expect to pay about $72 per episode for a high-quality podcast transcript using white-gloved transcription services.
- Lower-Quality: Podcast platforms like Apple Podcasts and YouTube provide free podcast transcripts. However, the major con of these podcast transcripts is that they are typically lower quality. Automated transcription services do not allow the creator to control for misspellings or grammatical disfluencies. This is especially important when considering things like proper nouns and fictional characters. Automated podcast transcripts provided by platforms typically contain disfluencies that impact user experience and content quality. Low-quality transcripts are also important to consider when thinking about podcast SEO. Search engines and algorithms cannot index audio files, so they often turn to resources like transcripts that contain crawlable text elements. It becomes increasingly difficult to rank for search queries using content containing these disfluencies, frequently found in platform-automated podcast transcripts.
Podcast transcription and podcast video captioning AI tools
With podcast AI, however, creators can control for these variables. Several AI tools exist that allow for high-quality, editable transcripts.
Additionally, podcast transcripts can be used to create accurate, engaging captions for podcast videos. By having podcast transcripts readily available, AI tools can automatically generate and insert captions onto your podcast videos. This process involves the AI tool analyzing the audio content, converting it into text, and then synchronizing the text with the video. All that’s left for you to do is select or design a template!
Here are some AI tools that can help caption podcast videos:
AI has revolutionized podcast transcription and video captioning by providing automated, AI-powered tools that are faster and increasingly accurate.
2. Content creation and enhancement
Another fantastic thing about AI? AI helps create, automate, and enhance the content creation process, inspiring podcasters to be more innovative and creative in their work.
At Podcast Movement, the analogy of AI as an intern kept popping up. And, when you think about it, it is a great analogy. Podcast AI, like an intern, can aid in the entire podcasting process. It can offload some of the work—especially the work you don’t love to do—speeding up the podcasting process.
One of AI’s most significant advantages is its ability to handle repetitive tasks such as transcription, editing, and show note generation. AI-powered tools allow podcasters to focus more on the creative aspects of their work, such as crafting compelling narratives and engaging with their audience (the things most podcasters enjoy the most).
By automating some of the more mundane, technical aspects of podcasting, AI frees up valuable time for creators, enabling them to produce higher-quality content without getting bogged down in the details.
Beyond the podcast itself, AI also plays a crucial role in expanding a podcast’s reach through social media content creation. Podcast AI tools can automatically generate audiograms, create podcast video clips, draft entire blog posts, create social captions, generate keywords, and so much more! By leveraging AI, podcasters can ensure that their content resonates with their listeners and reaches a broader audience through social media.
AI also helps podcasters optimize their content based on audience feedback and trends. AI-powered analytics tools can provide insights into listener preferences, helping podcasters tailor their episodes to meet their audience’s needs and interests better. Whether identifying popular topics or suggesting new angles for discussion, AI ensures that content remains relevant and engaging using your existing work.
Content creation and enhancement podcasting AI tools
Podcasters can continuously improve their content by integrating AI into the creation and distribution processes, ensuring they stay ahead in an increasingly competitive market.
Here are some great examples of AI content-creation tools for podcasts:
3. Editing and Post-Production
Another popular use case for podcasting AI? Editing!
AI-powered editing tools can automate many tedious tasks that typically bog down the post-production process. For instance, AI can automatically remove filler words (like “um” and “uh”), reduce background noise, and adjust audio levels for a more polished final product.
Editing and Post-Production Podcasting AI tools
Some advanced AI podcasting tools suggest edits based on the flow of conversation, identifying segments that might need trimming or reordering for better narrative coherence. These podcasting AI tools can significantly reduce the time it takes to produce a polished episode, allowing podcasters to focus on refining the content rather than getting lost in the technical details.
What are some of those AI editing tools for podcasts, you ask?
How does AI help podcasters create?
AI. It means artificial intelligence. So, how does something artificial help create?
There’s a common misconception that AI stifles creativity by automating too much of the podcasting process and detracts from organic creativity. However, I would argue that AI supports and enhances creativity. It, much like the actual creation of a podcast, helps podcasters save time, improve their work, and provide instant feedback.
AI helps podcasters create more and create better.
AI saves time to help create and market podcasts
Like many of us, I have opened a Word document and stared at a blinking cursor longer than I care to admit. I know roughly what needs to be done, but I often have trouble starting that particular task. (And I would like to think I am not alone in this feeling…)
For podcasters, the work can quickly pile up and become overwhelming. Many podcasters find themselves stretched thin between planning, recording, editing, and promoting, with little time left for creating content to help grow the podcast.
As mentioned earlier, AI can step in and help offload or, at the very least, speed up some of those tasks. In this sense, AI aids in the creative process by alleviating some of that all-too-familiar crunch-time feeling. AI does the heavy lifting, allowing the podcaster to reinvest that time into their creative process.
AI as a jumping-off point
Another way AI helps podcasters save time while creating is by serving as a jumping-off point.
By now, we’ve all seen some bad AI outputs. Whether a social post is riddled with too many emojis or a distorted image, AI can always create, but it doesn’t always create well. But, even so, these AI flops often inspire creators. AI outputs may not always be perfect, but they can serve as a draft or starting point.
Ethical concerns surrounding AI
With great power comes great responsibility.
As podcasters, our audience lends us their ears and, more importantly, their trust. It is our job to respect and maintain that trust. And, when it comes to AI, there are certainly some things you as a creator can do to ensure you A) use AI ethically and B) use AI in a way that creates high-quality content that is uniquely yours.
Transparency matters
Your audience trusts you for a reason. It is your job to maintain and respect their trust. Your audience has the right to know if, when, and how you use AI. Being upfront with your audience is one of the most important things you can do when using AI ethically.
One of the best things you can do when using AI is to be transparent about it. More often than not, just saying, “Hey, I did XYZ with the help of AI,” is enough.
Credit the AI tools or actions used in creating the podcast, too, like citing a source. This helps build trust with your audience and acknowledges the significant role AI plays in your podcasting process.
And, some food for thought: your audience probably can tell the difference between your work and AI’s. So, just be honest about it and give credit where credit is due.
Maintaining your standard
AI is a powerful tool, but it’s not perfect. As a creator, it’s vital to maintain quality control over your content, even when using AI. This means reviewing AI-generated content to ensure it meets your standards and adjusting as needed.
For example, if an AI tool suggests edits to your episode, reviewing them to ensure they align with your creative vision is essential. Similarly, if AI generates show notes or summaries, you should read through them to ensure they accurately reflect your episode’s content and unique style.
Maintaining quality control ensures that your content remains consistent and that your audience can rely on you to deliver the same level of quality they’ve come to expect.
Balancing act
Finally, it’s important to balance automation and human creativity. While AI can automate many aspects of the podcasting process, it’s the human touch that ultimately makes your content unique. Your voice, perspective, and creativity set your podcast apart as a creator.
AI should enhance your creativity, not replace it. This means using AI to handle the technical aspects of production while retaining complete control over the creative direction of your show. By balancing automation with human creativity, you can ensure your content remains authentic to your vision.
Podcasting AI: A bright, creative future
Before closing out, I want to leave you with one final point. AI is still so young. We are just at the beginning of what AI can do.
AI is esstenailly a child. All-be-it the world’s smartest child, but a child nonetheless. As podcasters and creators, it is our job to help shape the future of AI. This means testing the limits, helping to teach and train AI, and, most importantly, using AI ethically as part (not all) of the creative process.
As we look to the future of podcasting, it is clear AI is here to stay. Podcasting AI will continuously grow and learn from us, the creators while playing an important role in the industry.
By using AI, we acknowledge the power of podcasting AI and our own power. As creators, we decide how, when, and where to use AI. By embracing AI with integrity and maintaining a commitment to transparency, quality, and respect for our listeners, we can ensure that the future of podcasting is bright, innovative, and inclusive.
Together, we can continue to push the boundaries of what is possible while staying true to the values that make podcasting so special.
And P.S. Yes, while most of this post is my original thought, I used AI to help draft, create, edit, and optimize this blog post. Special shout out to ChatGPT, Grammarly.ai, and Yoast.
