Spotify announced a new partnership with ElevenLabs, allowing authors to upload audiobooks voiced using AI voice technology. This collaboration opens up the possibility of increasing the number of synthetically narrated audiobooks on the platform. To upload such an audiobook, authors must obtain a file from ElevenLabs and then use the Findaway Voices service, which distributes audiobooks for Spotify. Each recording is reviewed before publication, and AI-narrated audiobooks receive appropriate labeling.
ElevenLabs enables audiobooks to be narrated in twenty-nine languages. The free version of the program allows users to generate up to ten minutes of voice audio from text per month, while the paid Pro plan at ninety-nine dollars per month allows up to five hundred minutes. This can be especially useful for authors looking to reduce audiobook production costs or to create audio versions of older works that previously went unnoticed.
Spotify has already partnered with Google Play Books to introduce digitally narrated audiobooks, and now plans to expand its library through further partnerships. While Spotify emphasizes the importance of human narration, the company acknowledges that digital voices can make audiobook creation more accessible for emerging authors.
The emergence of AI-narrated audiobooks is sparking some debate within the publishing community. Some experts believe that such recordings may affect the overall quality of audiobooks for listeners.
