Do listeners want podcasts made with AI?

• Do listeners want to listen to podcasts produced with AI? New research unveiled by Sounds Profitable today shows that some parts of the population are particularly wary. “AI may be coming to podcasting, but no one can be made to like it,” suggests Tom Webster. (Podnews is 50% owned by Podcast Movement, which incorporates Sounds Profitable).

• The Signal Awards has revealed the finalists for this year’s awards - and opened voting for the Listener’s Choice Awards in every category. You’ve until Oct 9 to vote.

• On the company’s fifteenth anniversary, Spanish-language podcast platform iVoox has unveiled a new brand identity.

• Airwave has announced a strategic partnership with TWIT.tv, one of the longest-running and most respected technology podcast networks. Advertising sales for 2026 will be represented by Airwave’s sales partner, True Native Media.

• Spotify’s R&D blog covers experiments for podcast recommendations using AI. The company’s internal tool looks at the shows you’ve listened to in the past 90 days, and produces a profile to help with finding episodes that would be interesting to you.

• Wondery has cancelled ad sales support for award-winning show The Socially Distant Sports Bar.

• Want to release a new subscriber-only episode on Apple Podcasts? You can now set the time (and timezone) that you want the new episode released. Previously, shows would automatically go live at midnight in the US.

• PodMatch has released its latest industry report for September, focusing on indie podcasters. Only 20.5% of all indie interview shows are currently active, a number that has slowly declined over the past few months.

• Podsqueeze has launched a free AI Audio Enhancer. It removes background noise, filler words and silences.

Case Study: Explosive Growth of True Crime YouTube Channel

Paid content

In just five days, a True Crime Youtube channel gained 2,770 new subscribers—an impressive 41% increase from its baseline. The key to this surge? A strategic partnership with Audiencelift.com, a video promotion platform that targets “Earned Subscribers”—users who watch an ad and later subscribe organically. Over 39,000 video views generated 1,924 earned and 846 direct subscribers, yielding a cost of just $1.81 per new subscriber.

Unlike traditional ad campaigns that chase clicks, AudienceLift’s strategy emphasizes authentic engagement. They prioritize subscribers “who love your videos—not just watch them,” helping creators build loyal fanbases. For this True Crime video podcast, this meant converting casual viewers into long-term followers through compelling video ads placed in front of the right audiences. This data-backed, viewer-centric growth model illustrates how creators can achieve meaningful scale without compromising authenticity.

Learn more about Audiencelift.com’s YouTube growth platform.

Moves and hires

• Audioboom has named Craig Eastwood as Vice President, International. He previously was Commercial Operations Director at Adelicious, which Audioboom acquired in July.

Tips and tricks

• The benefits of editing - and of test listens - are revealed in this post from a man who makes coffee.

Podcast News

The weekly interview series Open Book with Anthony Scaramucci has joined Goalhanger. The first episode under the Goalhanger banner is released today - historian and author James Holland.

Help I Sexted My Boss has unveiled a major 2026 arena tour. The hosts William Hanson and Jordan North will take the live show to Cardiff, Glasgow, Manchester and London; the last tour sold 15,000 tickets in three hours.

Cyber threats are all around us, and in ShadowTalk this week you’ll learn about a highly deceptive FileFix campaign, how Microsoft and Cloudflare disrupted the massive Raccoon0365 phishing service, and how a self-replicating worm is targeting NPM packages. You’ll also hear about the top techniques that ReliaQuest has observed attackers using in recent customer incidents.

M.O.M. Files - Moments of Motherhood is a new podcast that feels like sitting down with two friends who get it. No pressure, no judgment—just real, honest conversations that make you feel seen as a mom in the thick of it. Every episode is a breath of fresh air, with gentle validation and the reminder you’re not alone.