Reddit AI post videos test narrates selected text threads
Reddit is testing AI-narrated video versions of selected posts, with a switch back to the original text thread.
By Hana Yoshida · Markets Reporter
3 min read
Reddit is testing AI-narrated video versions of selected text threads, turning posts and some comments into a playable format within the service. The Reddit AI post videos test matters because it gives users another way to follow long discussions while preserving access to the original written thread.
According to The Verge, the videos use synthetic voices to read a post and selected replies aloud. Text is highlighted as the narration proceeds, and the player is labeled “Real conversation voiced by AI.”
How do Reddit AI post videos work?
The format is an alternative playback option rather than a newly generated standalone clip. In an example reviewed by The Verge, a control at the top of the thread let users choose “Read” for the conventional post and comments or “Play” for the narrated video.
The reported example came from an eight-year-old r/boardgames discussion asking for adult road-trip game suggestions. The thread had 101 responses and was presented as an AI-voiced video lasting about three minutes, The Verge reported.
Who can use the test?
The Verge reported that the feature was available on the web for its reporter. Reddit spokesperson Rosa Kim told the publication that the company planned to begin rolling it out on iOS and Android starting Tuesday, initially using select existing posts.
Kim described it as an early, limited experiment intended to test whether people find the formats useful and whether Reddit can offer them in a way that feels authentic to the platform. Reddit plans to expand the test to more existing posts over time, according to Kim; the report did not identify a full list of eligible accounts, regions or threads.
How is this different from Reddit-to-video tools?
Reddit’s reported test focuses on playing back the text of a discussion with synchronized narration. It is not evidence that Reddit is making conventional podcasts, producing short-form social clips, generating new visuals or opening the feature to every thread.
- Reddit experiment: An in-platform Read/Play format for selected existing discussions, with AI narration of posts and some comments.
- Third-party products: Services such as StoryShort AI and ImagineArt market tools that turn pasted Reddit threads into standalone videos with generated visuals, captions and narration. Those products are separate from Reddit’s test.
The experiment follows Reddit’s recent statements about modernizing its video experience, The Verge reported. Chief Executive Steve Huffman had also discussed a way for people to listen to posts in the background during an earnings call, according to the publication.
The Verge noted potential drawbacks with automated narration, including possible mispronunciations or the selection of incorrect comments. Those were concerns raised in the report, not confirmed problems with the test.
This story draws on original reporting from The Verge.