Audible just announced something called Interactive Stories, which lets listeners “become part of the story’s world.” This is done via generative AI, so people can sort of talk to a character. The first of these experiences will accompany the upcoming Audible Original adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula.
The Interactive Story involves Dracula’s long-suffering servant Renfield. Audible says Renfield will assign the listener “a role, goal and stakes.” The platform also promises that the “listener responds in their own words and the character reacts in real time.” So it’s some kind of LARP-ing type thing, which could be fun depending on how well it’s done. The generative AI aspect doesn’t give me much hope, but we’ll have to wait and see.
“AI is allowing us to create new interactive experiences that today’s listeners, especially younger audiences, are craving,” said Andy Tsao, Chief Product and Analytics Officer at the company. A recent Pew Research survey seems to suggest that younger audiences are wary of AI, but maybe Audible has different data points as to what they’re currently “craving.”
The platform says this feature launches later this fall as a beta release. It didn’t provide an official date, but that new audio adaptation of Dracula comes out on October 1. It’ll probably happen sometime around then.
Audible has announced the next Interactive Story too. It’s set in the world of the upcoming Exoplanet original audio novel. The experience was created alongside author Benjamin Percy, and that’s set to release on November 5.
The company is also launching something called the Character Guide to coincide with that new Dracula adaptation. This actually sounds pretty useful. It visually displays who is speaking in real-time directly on the app and includes spoiler-free character cards. It can be tough to keep track of dozens of characters with an audiobook, as there’s no visual reference.
This is already available with the platform’s adaptation of George Orwell’s 1984. It’s also coming to Bram Stoker’s Dracula and the aforementioned Exoplanet.
Finally, Audible has announced something called Visual Explorer. This upcoming tool will display “relevant imagery and visual context at key moments” while listening to a story. The platform says “listeners might glimpse a map” or be given the ability to “explore an image tied to a pivotal moment.” A beta version of this feature will accompany The Cultural Tutor’s Grand Tour: The Story of Europe in Six Cities, which is basically an audio tour of various historical destinations throughout the continent.