ElevenLabs is a startup that launched an AI text-to-speech e-reading app globally. It supports 32 different languages from all over the world. The main selling point is that it can read PDF files, articles, newsletters, EPUB books, and most web content aloud. However, it does not read Apple Books or Kindle Books since it doesn’t support DRM.
There are many different narrators, which sets it apart from many other reading apps. Users can listen to the voices of Judy Garland, James Dean, Burt Reynolds, or Sir Laurence Oliver. ElevenLabs says the iconic voices are only available through the app and for individual streaming. The app is entirely free to download and use. The company said it might find a path to monetization sometime in the future. However, you can download the app for iOS and Android here: elevenlabs.io/text-reader.
ElevenLabs said it would add more features to the app, such as offline support, OCR, and audio snippet sharing. Thus, they will support this endeavour for a long time. The company raised around $80 million this year, so it has enough developers and a budget to compete against its rivals, such as Speechify and Mozilla’s Pocket.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.