Spotify is turning magazine articles into audiobooks

Spotify, one of the most popular music streaming services, is expanding beyond music, podcasts, and traditional audiobooks yet again – this time by turning long-form magazine journalism into something you can listen to on your commute.

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Starting today, Spotify is adding more than 650 narrated magazine articles to its audiobook library, pulling in stories from publications including Wired, GQ, Rolling Stone, The Atlantic, Vogue, Pitchfork, and Vanity Fair.

The company says that each narrated article is under two hours long and will count towards Premium subscribers’ monthly audiobook allowance, which in many regions currently sits at 15 listening hours per month. Free users can still access the feature too, but they’ll need to buy articles individually for $1.99 each. The rollout is only available in regions where Spotify Audiobooks is already supported.

Spotify says the articles are being produced in-house by its audiobook team, though it hasn’t clarified whether the narration itself is performed by human voice actors, AI-generated voices, or a mix of both. Given how aggressively Spotify has been leaning into generative AI recently, people will probably be asking that question quite a lot.

Just last week, the company announced several new AI-focused features during its investor event, including tools that can generate personalised podcasts based on uploaded files, PDFs, URLs, and listening habits. Spotify also revealed Prompted Playlists for audiobooks, which can build recommendations around prompts and listening history.

According to Spotify, audiobook listening hours grew 60 per cent year over year, but full-length books can still feel like a commitment. If that sounds like it describes your reading energy levels, then the new feature might be a welcome addition to curing boredom on your next commute.

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Esat Dedezade Contributor

About

Esat has been a gadget fan ever since his tiny four-year-old brain was captivated by a sound-activated dancing sunflower. From there it was a natural progression to a Sega Mega Drive, a brief obsession with hedgehogs, and a love for all things tech. After 7 years as a writer and deputy editor for Stuff, Esat ventured out into the corporate world, spending three years as Editor of Microsoft's European News Centre. Now a freelance writer, his appetite for shiny gadgets has no bounds. Oh, and like all good human beings, he's very fond of cats.