Sounder
Gesture-based voice communication, with patent-pending accessibility controls.
| Date | Investors | Amount | Round |
|---|---|---|---|
$150k | Seed | ||
| Total Funding | 000k | ||
Sounder operates as an end-to-end audio intelligence and podcast management platform, serving both independent creators and large media publishers. The company was established in 2019 by Kal Amin, Dan Daugherty, and Goran Krgovic, who brought experience from their previous roles at Google and Spotify. Kal Amin, with a background in business operations and monetization at Spotify and Google, serves as the CEO, while Dan Daugherty, as COO, focused on scaling operations and customer acquisition.
The firm's core business revolves around its Audio Intelligence technology, which utilizes artificial intelligence and machine learning to analyze audio content. This technology provides services such as brand safety and suitability analysis, contextual targeting, automated transcription, and content summarization. For podcast creators, Sounder offers a platform for hosting, distribution, and analytics to help them grow and monetize their shows. For larger enterprises and media publishers, the company offers its Audio Data Cloud, which provides deep insights into their content catalog to inform strategy and enhance monetization opportunities. A key feature is the ability to ensure brand safety by allowing advertisers to verify that content aligns with their values before an ad runs.
The business model includes subscription tiers for individual creators, starting at approximately $12.99 per month for unlimited podcasting, as well as enterprise-level solutions for larger publishers. Sounder's platform is designed to make audio content more discoverable and profitable, addressing a gap in the rapidly expanding podcast advertising market. The company has secured significant funding, including a $7.7 million Series A round in 2022 with investors like iHeartMedia and TechNexus. In March 2024, Sounder was acquired by Triton Digital.
Keywords: audio intelligence, podcast management, brand safety, contextual advertising, podcast monetization, adtech, audio analytics, podcast hosting, content discovery, creator tools, audio data cloud, automatic transcription, AI in audio, machine learning, media publishers, Kal Amin, Triton Digital, podcast advertising, audio content analysis, enterprise SaaS