I’ve recorded over 300 podcast episodes. I’ve interviewed everyone from bootstrapped founders in their garages to the CEOs of publicly traded companies. And I’m about to say something that might get me kicked out of the podcasters club: my next co-host might be an AI.
Before you dismiss me as another Silicon Valley tech bro who’s had too much kombucha, hear me out. I’m not talking about a robotic voice reading a script. I’m talking about a true creative partner. An AI that can research, brainstorm, and even challenge my ideas in real-time. An AI that can help me create better content, faster.
For years, I’ve been obsessed with the idea of using technology to augment human creativity. At RemoteTeam, which was acquired by Gusto, we built tools to help remote teams collaborate more effectively. We saw firsthand how the right technology could bridge distances and make teamwork seamless. At MovieLaLa, acquired by Gfycat, we used machine learning to help people discover new movies, and I saw how data could predict and even shape human taste. And as an angel investor in companies like Anthropic, OpenAI, and Scale AI, I’ve had a front-row seat to the incredible advances in artificial intelligence. I’ve seen what these models are capable of, and it’s nothing short of breathtaking.
Now, I’m convinced that AI is about to revolutionize the world of podcasting. And I’m not just talking about making it easier to produce a show. I’m talking about fundamentally changing the way we think about audio content.
The Unseen Grind of Podcasting
Let’s be brutally honest. Podcasting looks glamorous from the outside. You get to talk to interesting people, build an audience, and maybe even make some money. But behind the scenes, it’s a relentless grind. I love it, but it’s a ton of work.
First, you have to find a guest. This isn’t just sending a few emails. It’s a sales process. You have to identify potential guests, find their contact information, and then craft a personalized pitch that will actually get their attention. I’ve probably sent over a thousand guest outreach emails in my life. The response rate is maybe 20%. That’s a lot of rejection.
Then you have to prepare for the interview. This is where the real work begins. You can’t just show up and wing it. You have to do your homework. I spend at least 3-4 hours preparing for every single interview. I read their book, listen to their other podcast appearances, and scour their social media for interesting tidbits. I want to ask questions they haven’t been asked a hundred times before. That’s how you get a great conversation.
And that’s all before you even hit record.
Once the recording is done, the post-production nightmare begins. You have to edit out all the “ums” and “ahs,” the long pauses, and the parts where your dog starts barking in the background (true story). You have to add intro and outro music, level the audio, and make sure everything sounds professional. This used to take me 4-5 hours per episode. I’ve since hired an editor, but that’s a cost that not every podcaster can afford.
Then you have to write show notes, create a transcript, and design promotional assets. And finally, you have to promote the episode. You have to share it on social media, email your list, and beg your friends to share it. It’s a never-ending cycle.
It’s no wonder that so many podcasts fail. The latest stats show that over 75% of podcasts don’t make it past their 10th episode. That’s a podcast graveyard filled with broken dreams and abandoned microphones.
The AI Co-Host: A Partner, Not a Replacement
But what if it didn’t have to be this way? What if you had a co-host who could do all the heavy lifting for you? A co-host who was always available, never got tired, and had access to the entire internet’s worth of information.
That’s the promise of an AI co-host.
Imagine this workflow: You have a spark of an idea for a podcast episode. You type a few sentences into a chat interface: “An episode about the future of AI in creative fields. I want to talk about the opportunities and the ethical concerns.” Your AI co-host instantly generates a detailed outline, complete with research from the latest academic papers, talking points that challenge conventional wisdom, and a list of potential guests, ranked by their relevance and social media reach. It even generates a list of interview questions tailored to each guest, designed to spark a lively debate.
During the recording, your AI co-host can act as a real-time fact-checker. When you mention a statistic, it can instantly verify it and provide a source. It can also suggest follow-up questions and new avenues of conversation, keeping the discussion fresh and engaging. It can even play the role of a skeptical co-host, pushing back on your ideas and forcing you to defend your arguments. This isn’t about making things easier; it’s about making them better.
And when the recording is done, your AI co-host can automatically edit the episode, removing mistakes and dead air with a precision that would take a human editor hours. It can generate a full transcript and show notes, complete with timestamps and links to relevant resources. It can also create a dozen different promotional assets, from audiograms for Instagram to quote graphics for Twitter, all perfectly branded and ready to post.
This isn’t science fiction. This is happening right now. I’m an investor in a few stealth startups that are building these tools. And I believe that within the next two years, AI co-hosts will be as common as USB microphones.
My Own AI Co-Host Experiment: Project Chimera
I’ve been so fascinated by this idea that I decided to build my own AI co-host. I’m calling it “Project Chimera,” after the mythical creature made of different parts. It’s a bit of a Frankenstein’s monster, but it’s my monster.
I started by feeding it all of my previous podcast episodes, every article I’ve ever written, and all of my social media posts. I wanted it to learn my voice, my style, and my way of thinking. I also gave it access to a massive dataset of news articles, academic papers, and books, so it could become an expert on the topics I care about: startups, investing, and AI.
The results have been nothing short of mind-blowing.
I recently used Project Chimera to prepare for an interview with a well-known venture capitalist. In just a few minutes, it generated a 10-page briefing document that included the VC’s entire investment history, a summary of their most recent blog posts, and a list of insightful, and frankly, provocative questions that I would have never thought of on my own. One of the questions was about a failed investment from a decade ago, and it was phrased in a way that was both respectful and direct. It led to the most honest and vulnerable part of our conversation.
During the interview, I had Project Chimera running in the background, and it was like having a secret weapon. At one point, the VC mentioned a little-known startup they had invested in. Before I could even ask for the name, Project Chimera had already pulled up the company’s website and was feeding me key information about their product, their team, and their latest funding round. I was able to ask a follow-up question that made it seem like I was a genius who had been following the company for years.
I’m still in the early days of this experiment, but I’m already convinced that AI is going to be a game-changer for me. It’s not about replacing me as the host. It’s about augmenting my abilities and freeing me up to focus on what I do best: having great conversations.
The Future of Audio is a Conversation
Some people will say that AI is going to kill podcasting. They’ll say that it’s going to lead to a flood of low-quality, soulless content. And they’re not entirely wrong. There will be a lot of bad AI-generated podcasts, just like there are a lot of bad human-generated podcasts.
But I believe that the best podcasts will still be the ones that are driven by human creativity and connection. AI is a tool, and like any tool, it can be used for good or for bad. It’s up to us to decide how we want to use it.
I’m choosing to use it to have better conversations. I’m choosing to use it to explore new ideas and to challenge my own assumptions. I’m choosing to use it to create content that is more insightful, more engaging, and more human.
The future of podcasting isn’t a monologue. It’s a dialogue. And I, for one, am excited to have a conversation with an AI.
What about you? Are you ready to have a conversation with an AI? Or do you think this is the beginning of the end for authentic human voices? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Find me on Twitter and let’s debate.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I apply this thinking to my own situation?
Start by identifying the core principle behind the opinion, not the specific example. Then ask yourself: does this principle apply to my context? If yes, test it in a small, low-risk way before going all in.
What experience informs this perspective?
This perspective comes from over a decade of building companies in Silicon Valley, two successful exits (RemoteTeam to Gusto, MovieLaLa to Gfycat), and investing in 200+ startups including Anthropic, OpenAI, and Scale AI. I write about what I've lived.
What's the most common pushback you get on this?
People often push back by citing exceptions or edge cases. And they're usually right that exceptions exist. But building a strategy around exceptions rather than patterns is a losing game for most founders.
Do all experts agree with this view?
No, and that's fine. The best ideas in business are often contrarian. I share my perspective based on my experience and data, but I encourage you to seek out opposing viewpoints and form your own conclusions.