Reddit trials AI-narrated video, audio for select text posts
TL;DR
- Reddit is running a limited experiment that converts select text posts and top comments into AI-narrated short videos and audio.
- CEO Steve Huffman framed it as an answer to podcasts and shortform videos elsewhere online that already read Reddit threads aloud.
- A Reddit spokesperson says the underlying text posts and comments remain unchanged, and the trial started rolling out to web and apps.
Reddit is running a limited experiment that turns select text posts and top comments into short AI-narrated videos and audio, Engadget reported. One example the company shared converts an eight-year-old post from r/boardgames into a three-minute video with AI-generated voices reading the original question and top replies.
CEO Steve Huffman previewed the change on the company's earnings call: "There's an emerging content type elsewhere on the internet of basically podcasts where people read Reddit content, and so I think this version of like listened-to or spoken-Reddit can be really engaging as well." A Reddit spokesperson said the original text posts and comments "remain unchanged."
Reddit introduced video comments in June, and this trial sits inside a broader push to attract new users and lift engagement. It arrives amid a steady flow of voice AI news we've catalogued this quarter. It's our 43rd voice AI story in 90 days, on the heels of ElevenLabs anchoring a $7bn Q1 voice funding rush.
Originally reported by engadget.com
Read the original article →Original headline: Reddit Tests AI Narration of Text Posts, Adds 'Play' Mode Video Versions Across Web, iOS and Android