Earlier on Thursday, Spotify unveiled a new ElevenLabs-powered AI tool for self-publishing audiobooks on Thursday, along with capabilities for AI-generated podcasts under the Spotify for Authors platform. During its Investor Day event, the business announced that the functionality will initially only support the English language and launch in beta this June on an invite-only basis.
The “Audiobook Creation Tools,” a future AI-assisted creation tool driven by ElevenLabs text-to-speech technology. This integrated feature, which was unveiled at Spotify’s 2026 Investor Day, works directly with the Spotify for Authors platform, and it makes it simple for self-published authors to turn finished works into fully produced audio versions.
Authors have the privilege and are also free to publish their audiobooks wherever because the AI-powered audiobook generation won’t bind them to an exclusive contract.
The announcement expands on Spotify’s earlier collaboration with ElevenLabs, which permitted authors to submit audiobooks produced on the voice AI startup’s platform to Spotify.
In order to enable digitally narrated content, the audio-streaming platform already has a connection with Google Play Books.
Nevertheless, it could have wanted authors to have access to additional and more recent speech models, like those provided by ElevenLabs, that sound more expressive and human. Notably, in 2025, ElevenLabs launched its own author self-publishing platform.
In addition to this, ten more languages, which are French, Canadian French, German, Dutch, Latin American Spanish, Swedish, Finnish, Icelandic, Danish, and Norwegian, will be added as support under Spotify’s “Spotify for Authors” program.
Also, in addition, the business will provide new options for families and schools in the future and expand its Audiobook+ plans this year to accommodate larger listening restrictions. (However, Spotify’s release did not provide any information about the cost or usage of these programs, as this is yet to be announced.)
With more than a million Audiobook+ memberships to date, Spotify is expected to earn $100 million in recurring income annually.
During the event, the business unveiled a new feature that allows customers to ask questions for audiobook discovery using natural language. Additionally, this summer, Spotify will add audiobooks to a function that lets users make prompt-based music and podcast playlists.
Over the past three years, Spotify has had a major impact on its emphasis on audiobooks and has grown its repertoire to 700,000 titles. The company provided audiobook charts, enabled in-app purchases, expanded the service to foreign countries, and invested in non-English titles.
It also launched a scheme this year that allows writers to sell their works physically in the United States and the United Kingdom.
The company claims that by implementing these approaches, listening hours have increased by 60% annually. Additionally, Spotify said that over half of its users began listening to audiobooks during the last year.
The tool will enable seamless manuscript conversion in which authors can upload a finished text file, and the system will automatically generate a digital audiobook. Creators also have control and review options, and they can preview the narration, adjust pacing, and fix specific pronunciations before publishing.
The platform offers a free allocation tier. With this, authors can produce up to five English-language audiobooks entirely at no cost. The contracts are non-exclusive. Writers retain full freedom to publish and distribute their AI-generated files anywhere else.
Finally, the tool ensures transparent labeling. All AI-narrated titles will be explicitly tagged with a “narrated by a digital voice” label in the store.
According to the source, the launch schedule and market reach are expected to be an invite-only closed beta in June 2026. Initially, it will only support English-language manuscripts. Interested creators can submit applications for early access through the official Spotify for Authors Blog.
This announcement marks an expansion of a long-term partnership. Since early 2025, creators have been able to manually upload audio packages generated externally using ElevenLabs Audiobooks. This latest integration removes the need for external file exports entirely. As a result, the entire process now lives natively inside Spotify’s ecosystem.
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.
