India-based audio platform Pocket FM boasts an extensive library of over 200,000 hours of content. Yet, its CEO, Rohan Nayak, recognizes the platform's potential for further expansion. Nayak believes there is room to enhance the original content and diversify the library across various genres and sub-genres. The key lies in leveraging AI tools to streamline audio production, refine writing strategies, and adapt stories for different regions.
Partnership with ElevenLabs: Transforming Production
Pocket FM has formed an outstanding partnership with ElevenLabs, enabling the conversion of writings into audio series. This collaboration has led to a remarkable 5 times increase in production speed and a 30 times reduction in cost compared to professionally generated audio series. Nayak shared, "We have thoroughly tested how these AI adaptations perform in different markets, and the results have been highly encouraging. Although we are still fine-tuning our models to address errors, we are confident that the technology is now suitable for use in show production."Adapting Stories for Different Regions
One of the AI tools Pocket FM is exploring focuses on adapting stories for different regions. The company has trained in-house models that go beyond mere translation, carefully handling cultural nuances during the conversion process from one region to another. Nayak emphasized the challenge of solving the hallucination problem in stories spanning hundreds of episodes. The company has had to address the limitations of open-source model context windows and build maps of relationships between different entities to ensure character consistency.Creative Assistant for Writers
Another tool being tested by the company serves as a creative assistant for writers. It helps them generate alternative storylines and provides ideas for plots. Additionally, the company plans to incorporate insights from its historical data into the tool to guide writers on what works best on the platform. Nayak mentioned that although this tool is in its early stages, the company aims to empower solo writers by giving them the essence of a writer's room. This allows writers to brainstorm freely without sacrificing creative control, which is the core concept behind this writing assistant.Building a Blockbuster Engine
Pocket FM is investing in creating a blockbuster engine that will draw on insights from the platform to identify hit shows. The end goal is to scale the catalog by producing content independently and collaborating with a network of writers. However, to achieve significant growth and popularity, the company must create blockbuster shows. Nayak stated, "Blockbusters are the driving force behind any content platform. While we have a strong user-generated content base, identifying true blockbusters remains a challenging task."Pocket FM has achieved remarkable results with its AI deployment. With the help of AI in voice creation, the platform now hosts over 40,000 series. Additionally, the company has generated $3 million in revenue from these efforts. Overall, in financial year 2024, the platform achieved a revenue of $127 million.The most significant challenge for the company is finding the right balance between using AI to assist creatives and ensuring the quality of content. There is a risk that AI could be used to expedite content production at the expense of quality, resulting in a flood of mediocre content that makes it difficult for algorithms to highlight good shows.Puneet Sharma, an India-based writer and lyricist, highlighted the importance for artists to prove their authenticity in a world of formulaic work. He added that AI tools can be beneficial for generating ideas and exploring different styles but may also lead to the loss of the learning process through failure.Nayak stated that some of the company's writers and creatives already use AI tools, and the goal is to provide tools with context and integration into the platform.Pocket FM has secured $197 million in funding through multiple rounds, with backers such as Lightspeed Ventures, Tencent, and Times Internet. The company competes with other content players on multiple fronts, including Audible, Omidyar Network-backed Pratilipi, and Google-backed Kuku FM.
