Audible Adds AI Character Chats and Story Guides to Audiobooks
Audible, the audiobook company owned by Amazon, has unveiled three new features aimed at deepening the listening experience as competition in the sector intensifies, particularly from Spotify. The tools, announced on Thursday, allow users to follow a book's characters, take part in interactive narratives, and access extra images and details about locations referenced in a title.
The location-based feature will initially be available for just one book: "The Cultural Tutor: A Modern Guide to History, Art, and Philosophy in 49 Short Chapters" by Sheehan Quirke. That work aims to make culture more approachable by offering brief lessons on poetry, art, architecture, and geography, among other subjects.
The other two additions — a character guide and interactive stories — are also launching on a limited scale.
Starting with the October 1 release of Audible's Original production of "Dracula," the character guide will assist listeners in keeping track of the book's many figures, a task that can be more difficult in audio than in print. The Audible Originals label indicates that the audiobook, memoir, exclusive series, podcast, or performance was produced by Audible's own studios, rather than signifying that the content itself is original; "Dracula," for instance, is not.
Within "Dracula," the guide will show who is speaking in real time on the player screen, helping listeners avoid confusion. It will also offer spoiler-free character cards that present the voice actor and their biography. According to Audible, users will eventually be able to ask the guide questions about the plot as it progresses.
Additional audiobooks that will include the character guide are the Audible Original of George Orwell's "1984" and the upcoming Audible Original "Exoplanet," written by Benjamin Percy and executive produced by Andy Weir, the author of "Project Hail Mary" and "The Martian."
The third feature, interactive stories, will also be added to "Dracula" and "Exoplanet."
The concept is to draw the listener into the narrative through a supplementary experience where they can converse with a character. Using generative AI, this feature allows listeners to interact with Renfield, Dracula's servant, in the new Audible Original. The character initiates the exchange, assigning the listener a role, a goal, and stakes, after which the listener replies in their own words. The character then responds in real time.
Audible says the creators are involved in building the foundations of these interactive stories, ensuring they remain connected to the book's events. In the case of a work like "Dracula," the aim is to stay true to the original creator's vision.
These developments arrive as audiobook listening and revenue continue to climb, with U.S. sales hitting $2.43 billion in 2025. The rising demand stems from multiple factors, including the widespread use of smartphones and increasingly hectic schedules that make sitting down with a book feel like a luxury. TikTok's "BookTok" community has likely also helped push reading into the mainstream, a trend mirrored in the most popular audiobook genres, which overlap with BookTok's interests in fiction, sci-fi, thrillers, and romantasy.
"These new features invite listeners into a story in ways that simply weren't possible before, marking the latest step in our nearly 30-year journey to push audio storytelling forward," Audible's Chief Content Officer, Rachel Ghiazza, said in a statement about the launch. "We're excited to build on these while working hand in hand with creators, because we know that more time spent with stories benefits everyone who helps bring them to life."
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