YouTube could let you swap ads in videos

• YouTube could be switching on dynamic ad insertion, according to a report by Semafor. The report says YouTube “would allow host-read ads to be dynamically inserted and swapped out within individual YouTube videos”, as is already the case for audio podcasts using open RSS. YouTube hasn’t commented.

  • Semafor suggest that Spotify offers this product. It doesn’t; videos on Spotify do not have dynamic ad insertion, and uploading a video episode replaces any audio episode.

• 427,000 podcasts from members of The Podcast Standards Project now use additional Podcasting 2.0 features, according to a new update. In a blog post, the group encourages co-operation between podcast hosting companies and podcast apps. The post is the first since August last year; it acknowledges the difficulty of making progress, and asks for “killer features” to help move the project forward.

• Generative audio AI company ai|coustics has raised €5mn (US$5.4mn) in funding. The company is aiming to “bring its AI-powered studio-quality sound to every platform and device”.

• The Signal Awards are open today for entries. The awards boast new categories, including more for fiction podcasts, and a new honor for thought leadership.

• Podcasters plan ahead - the average time it takes to be a guest on a podcast is 83 days, according to Interview Valet’s 2025 State of Podcast Guesting Report. The data suggests that there are just over 100,000 podcasts actively seeking interviewees.

She Leads with CARE

Paid content

She Leads with CARE is a limited podcast series hosted by actress and producer Bellamy Young. Join Bellamy to learn about the difference we can make in our own lives – and the lives of those around us – when we care.

Financial independence changes lives, and Lilian Mkusa is on a mission to make that happen for women in Tanzania.

As a mentor and coordinator with CARE Tanzania, Lilian helps train women in financial literacy and economic empowerment through CARE’s Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs).

These community-led savings groups provide women with the resources and skills to start businesses, support their families, and invest in their futures. Lilian has seen firsthand how economic empowerment can break cycles of poverty and create lasting change.

In this episode, Bellamy Young talks with Lilian about her journey, the impact of financial education, and the transformative power of women lifting each other up.

Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Moves and hires

• Jillian Winmill has joined Amplitude Media Partners as Senior Partnerships Manager. Like many others at the company, she joins from AdvertiseCast/Libsyn Ads.

Tips and tricks - with Pod Predictor by Coleman Insights

• What makes a story truly captivating? It’s nothing to do with your microphone, or how much dynamic compression you use, or that de-esser plugin; and everything to do with the narrative structure of the story - whether it’s linear, non-linear, or one of six other ways to tell a story. The good folk at Hindenburg tell us more.

Podcast News - with Airwave

New on Airwave: We predict a Book Riot - Jeff O’Neal and Rebecca Schinsky discuss the latest news in the world of books and reading, including hot new releases, adaptations, publishing industry events, and more. This podcast is from Book Riot, the largest independent editorial book site in North America.

In The Action Catalyst this week, just in time for March Madness, Tyler Summitt, son of legendary NCAA coach Pat Summitt, shares the story of Pat’s humble beginnings, the art of mastering full executive decision making in 90 second or less, the “secret sauce” to Pat’s leadership, what she definitely didn’t understand about a 5-year-old’s soccer game, how to visualize winning in a (very, very) highly detailed way, and the key component that gets you to over a 90% success rate, on the court, and off.

In Podnews Weekly Review there’s a full-length interview with Matt Medeiros today, talking about Podcasting 2.0 and his thoughts on how we can make podcast apps better.

What do the labels on wine bottles really mean? In the Everyday Sommelier, Kristi Mayfield and guest Reid Patterson from Mount Eden Vineyards, will uncover why a wine labeled as one varietal might contain more than just one grape in the mix. Some wines are blended; others aren’t - learn why, and Reid shares his family’s legacy in wine production.

Mark Cuban, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Cleo Abram and two eleven year-olds walk into a bar … or in this case into Nayeema Raza’s podcast, Smart Girl Dumb Questions. Nayeema was formerly heard on Kara Swisher’s shows as the on-air producer. Now she’s got her own show: full of sass, smarts and, yes, dumb questions on today’s hot topics, ranging from whether billionaires can save us to whether kids these days are really addicted to social media.

The Women’s Podcast Industry Network Podcast launches a mini-season today to spotlight women in the podcasting industry who are leading the way in Africa, the UK and Canada. Hosted by Christina Barsi, the show interviews Fatima Zaidi, Founder and CEO of Quill Inc. and CoHost, Sangeeta Pillai, creator of the award-winning podcast Soul Sutras, and Gathoni Ngumba, Community Manager at Afripods.