Pocket FM says AI now helps make 93% of its audio catalog
annualized revenue run rate
A one-year estimate made by multiplying one month’s revenue by 12.
text-to-speech
Technology that turns written words into spoken voices.
revenue retention
The share of revenue that remains from users over time.
Pocket FM is showing what happens when AI joins a creative business. The Indian audio-story platform says its annualized revenue run rate doubled to $500 million over the past year. Yet the company says people still create the ideas and stories. AI helps turn those ideas into finished audio at a much larger scale.
What happened
Co-founder and CEO Rohan Nayak told TechCrunch that the run rate rose from about $250 million a year earlier. It reached $430 million in April, then $500 million now. Pocket FM calculates this figure by multiplying one month’s revenue by 12. It is a pace estimate, not contracted recurring revenue.
How people and AI divide the work
AI now supports 93% of Pocket FM’s catalog. It supports 99% of new content. Human creators still provide ideas and storytelling. The company built AI tools for creative writing and text-to-speech. Its own models use years of production data and signals about listener engagement. This is an AI-assisted workflow, not fully autonomous storytelling.
Why lower costs matter
Nayak said AI made production about 80 times cheaper. One hundred hours of content once took about one year. Now, Pocket FM says, the same amount can be made in one day. More than 550,000 creators produce about 2.5 million hours of AI-powered content each year. The library now exceeds 770,000 audio series. Two years ago, it held about 100,000 hours. The company links the larger choice of stories partly to a rise in 12-month revenue retention, from 44% to 76%.
Where the money comes from
Pocket FM says it has over 250 million listeners across more than 20 countries. The United States grew about 70% in one year. It now supplies about 70% of the run rate. About $85 million comes from advertising. Roughly $415 million comes from paid episode unlocks. Ninety-six titles have made over $1 million each, including 13 above $10 million.
What remains unclear
These figures come mainly from Pocket FM’s account in the TechCrunch interview. The company says it is profitable and cash-flow positive on an adjusted basis. It did not disclose profit, cash flow, or margins. Reports also describe possible fundraising of $100 million to $120 million at a valuation near $2 billion. The company has not confirmed those terms.
What to watch next
Pocket Entertainment is extending the model beyond audio. Its U.S.-only microdrama app Pocket Saga reached an annualized run rate of about $15 million after three months. Its videos use successful audio stories and no traditional live-action production. The company plans at least two more entertainment formats within five years. It also wants to license stories for books, television, and movies. Pocket FM’s model keeps human ideas at the center while making production far faster. The results will show whether more stories also become durable businesses. The company says an IPO is not planned within the next 24 months.
Source: TechCrunch report
How Pocket FM uses AI to make more audio stories
📰 Full story: Pocket FM says AI now helps make 93% of its audio catalog
Pocket FM says people create the stories, while AI helps finish them.
revenue run rate
An estimate of yearly revenue based on one month’s money.
text-to-speech
A tool that turns written words into spoken voices.
revenue retention rate
A measure of how much user revenue stays over time.
💡 The gist
- Pocket FM is an Indian service for audio stories.
- AI helps make 93% of its catalog and 99% of new content.
- The company says its yearly revenue pace reached $500 million.
What changed?
Pocket FM says its annual revenue run rate doubled in about one year. It rose from about $250 million to $500 million. A revenue run rate is an estimate. It multiplies one month’s revenue by 12. It does not promise that amount for the whole year.
The company says AI made production about 80 times cheaper. One hundred hours of audio once took about one year. Now, Pocket FM says, 100 hours can be made in one day. This lets the company try more stories.
People still have an important job. They think of ideas and shape the storytelling. AI helps with writing and text-to-speech. Text-to-speech means turning written words into spoken voices.
More than 550,000 creators now make about 2.5 million hours of AI-powered audio each year. Pocket FM says its library has more than 770,000 audio series. Two years ago, its whole catalog had about 100,000 hours.
Why this matters
More choices may help listeners find stories they like. Pocket FM says its 12-month revenue retention rate rose from 44% to 76%. The company connects part of that rise to its larger story selection. This number tracks revenue kept from users over time. It is not simply a listener count.
Pocket FM says it has more than 250 million listeners. They live across over 20 countries. The United States is its biggest market. It provides about 70% of the company’s yearly revenue pace. Ads bring in about $85 million. Paid episode unlocks bring in about $415 million.
What we still need to learn
Pocket FM says it is profitable on an adjusted basis. It has not shared profit, cash flow, or margin details. Reports mention possible fundraising. The company has not confirmed the amount or valuation.
Next, Pocket Entertainment, Pocket FM’s parent company, is moving into short dramas. Its U.S.-only Pocket Saga app reached a $15 million yearly pace after three months. Pocket FM’s test asks a big question. Can AI increase the number of stories without losing the human ideas people love?
People make the stories, and AI helps with the voices
📰 Full story: Pocket FM says AI now helps make 93% of its audio catalog
Pocket FM uses people and computers to make many audio stories.
Pocket FM
An Indian service where people listen to stories.
AI
A computer helper that can make words and voices.
Pocket FM is an Indian service for listening to stories.
People think of the story ideas. They decide what the stories should say.
AI is a computer helper. It helps write words and make voices.
So, Pocket FM can make many more stories.
The company says 100 hours once took about one year. Now, 100 hours can take one day. That comparison uses the same 100 hours.
Pocket FM says AI helps with 93 of 100 stories. It helps with 99 of 100 new stories.
People still help create the stories.
The company says its yearly money pace reached $500 million. That number is an estimate from one month.
The company told TechCrunch these numbers. We do not know every money detail yet.
People bring the story ideas. AI helps make the words and voices faster.