AI Disclosure In The Podcast Industry
When The Hollywood Reporter published “5,000 Podcasts. 3,000 Episodes a Week. $1 Cost Per Episode” about Inception Point AI’s plan to churn out thousands of shows weekly, it sparked immediate industry reaction. In podcasting, AI is used behind the scenes for a variety of tasks, and while our agency has advocated for ethical limits on the use of AI in endorsement advertising, there have also been clever uses of AI, particularly in the realm of contextually-relevant, targeted podcast ads.
A Flood of Content
Inception Point aims to release 3,000 episodes a week, most of them AI-generated, and monetized with programmatic podcast ads. Vulture didn’t mince words in its headline: “Inception Point’s AI Podcasts Are Banking on Slop.” The piece (rightfully) critiques the strategy as prioritizing mass production over meaningful listening experiences.
Nick Hilton echoed this sentiment in his recent Medium post , noting that the Inception Point model isn’t about creating better podcasts, but simply creating more of them. As he put it: “It is indicative, however, of the short-termism that is, at present, guiding the way that the media interacts with AI.”
Real Ethical Questions
Our industry has never shied away from innovation, but we’ve also lived through its stumbles. Technology can be transformative, but it must be used responsibly. Ensuring audiences know when a show is AI-generated isn’t nitpicking, it's protecting trust. In a time when misinformation is already rampant, flooding directories with AI-produced shows doesn’t just clutter discoverability it undermines the authenticity that makes podcasting valuable.
According to Podnews, “There’s no disclosure that the show is AI generated … though the show’s reviews have worked that out, calling it AI slop.”
Economics vs. Quality
The Podnews report also highlights the economics: “Shows are made for an apparent cost of just $1 an episode; and Spreaker’s programmatic ads mean shows can get into profit after as little as 20 listeners.”
Our Founder and CEO, Glenn Rubenstein, noted a similar concern:
“This isn’t about AI helping or empowering creators unlock new possibilities–it's about flooding the market and turning AI podcasts into a paper shredder for programmatic ad dollars.”
Glenn Rubenstein, CEO ADOPTER Media
Why Human Voices Still Matter
For advertisers, the bottom line is that podcast advertising works because of the trust between host and listener. A host-read ad isn’t just talking points, it's a trusted recommendation. AI can generate voices, but it can’t replicate trust.
As our SVP of Client Services Adam McNeil put it:
“Advertisers aren’t just buying words; they’re buying the trust between host and audience. And that’s something no algorithm can fully replicate.”
Adam McNeil, SVP of Client Services ADOPTER Media
The Only Path Forward
Platforms like Apple and Spotify need to make it easier to label AI-heavy content and require creators/publishers to disclose the percentage of a podcast episode that is AI-generated.
Currently, the Apple Podcasts for Creators page states that podcasts must disclose AI-generated content in the audio and metadata for the show.
But neither Apple nor Spotify offers a simple checkbox to designate that a podcast is majority AI content.
We believe this should work the same way explicit content is flagged. And to be effective, it needs to be built on a standardized RSS element, so whether the disclosure is set at upload by the hosting company, or applied directly by Apple or Spotify, the tag can be consistently recognized by all players, portals, and ad servers.
YouTube Shows Leadership In Disclosure
YouTube has shown leadership in this field, with its disclosures and disclaimers for AI-altered or AI-generated “synthetic” content. Requiring creators to disclose empowers listeners and advertisers to make informed decisions.
In fairness to Inception Point, they now disclose in their show descriptions that “This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI”. But given their stated strategy of using dynamically inserted, run-of-network and programmatic ads, that’s not enough.
This is why in tandem with Apple and Spotify enabling and recognizing an AI disclosure tag, all programmatic SSPs (supply-side platforms) and DSPs (demand-side platforms) need to give advertisers the ability to opt out of their impression orders being filled with podcasts that meet a certain threshold of AI-generated content.
Transparency Is Vital
To maintain the credibility of programmatic ad spend and ensure that AI-heavy content isn’t (unknowingly) burning ad budgets for programmatic or dynamic backfill campaigns: transparency is vital.
The emergence of AI podcasts is a reminder of why advertisers must be thoughtful about where they spend their dollars. At ADOPTER Media, we remain committed to backing creators who bring real voices, trust, and connection to their audiences ... because that’s where advertising works best.
Glenn Rubenstein
Glenn Rubenstein is the Founder and CEO of ADOPTER Media. Since 2007, he's helped brands engage online audiences through authentic advertising.
