Spotify begins accepting AI-narrated audiobooks recorded using ElevenLabs' software; Spotify already allows AI-recorded audiobooks, with several restrictions.

It's OK Spotify... I already left, you don't need to convince me any more

Can we get a cheaper music-only subscription? Thanks!

I don't give a shit about audiobooks, and I use a different platform for podcasts. I really don't want to support Spotify spending unlimited dollars on Joe Rogan every other year. But they're the platform with most of my music available, for now.

I'm glad I unsubscribed. Also, they kept pushing right wing nutjobs podcasts. Screw that.

Which will lower the cost to them, and will therefore lower the cost to the consumer, right?

.... Right?

So rather than finally adding basic functionality for audibooks, which the app desperately needs, they'll bloat their numbers with slop instead. But Spotify has always handled audiobooks exceptionally poorly so this is very on brand I guess.

Spotify would have to pay for added functionality. AI slop comes for free.

Is there a public tool to turn a book into an audiobook now?

ElevenLabs is pretty much the premiere AI voice transcription service. It's pretty wild.
- I’m as anti “AI” as they come but there’s a master Japanese carpenter on YouTube, Shoyan, who goes through the trouble of translating his commentary to English, someone proofs it because the grammar is usually perfect, and then runs it through a comforting racially ambiguous old man voice from ElevenLabs I think. And honestly? It works really well. It’s obviously not a natural voice but it’s not fake enough to be disorienting or annoying like the early types were.
- Yeah, but is there anything that's not >$100/month to transcribe one book worth of audio?
Yes! Read a book out loud, preferably to your kids, recording each chapter as a file. Then use m4b-tool to combine all the chapter files into a full audiobook.
- Unfortunately my toddler doesn't have the same reading interests as I... I also don't know if I could handle listening to my own voice.

Gross

How are people feeling about Deezer?

People forgot that Deezer existed, long time ago.

Spotycrap is crap, I'm glad I cancel my subscription and manage to patch the app, on the other hand, youtube music is superior and worth the subscription