ThreadCast: turn Reddit into a podcast with private, on-device AI voices — MP3 export coming
Hey IH 👋 Solo founder here, building under the name Pixel Labs.
I kept wanting to listen to Reddit on my commute instead of reading on a tiny screen — so I built ThreadCast. It turns a thread (post + top comments) into a podcast, with a different AI voice per author so it plays like a conversation, not one flat monotone reader.
Privacy is the whole thesis: the AI voices run 100% on-device. No cloud, no account, nothing leaves your phone, works offline. Most read-aloud tools ship your text to a server — ThreadCast deliberately doesn't. That's a harder engineering path, but it's the point.
Where it's headed: MP3 export — save any thread as a shareable audio file you can play in any podcast app, send to a friend, or keep for a flight. That lands with the Android app.
Status: Chrome extension live and free today; Android app + MP3 export landing soon. iOS later.
Monetization (the IH question 🙂): free with your phone's system voices + all the core listening; the plan is to charge for the on-device AI voices + MP3 export once the Android app ships — indie pricing, no VC.
Would love feedback from this crowd — on the on-device/privacy approach, the voice quality, and how you'd price a local-first app. Happy to share what I learn.
This is a good idea, but I’d be careful not to position it only as “Reddit to podcast.”
That sounds fun, but maybe a bit novelty-app-like.
The stronger angle is probably: private, offline listening for long Reddit threads.
That makes the on-device part feel like a real reason to choose ThreadCast, not just an engineering detail. The user is not only buying voices or MP3 export. They’re buying a cleaner way to save, listen, and revisit high-signal threads without sending the content anywhere.
For pricing, I’d probably not charge only for “AI voices.” I’d bundle the paid version around the full listening workflow: better voices, MP3 export, offline library, and maybe saved thread collections.
Happy to put a tighter version in writing if useful. I’d map the free vs paid split, Android launch pricing, and which user segment is most likely to pay first.
This is genuinely helpful, thank you. "Private, offline listening for long Reddit threads" is tighter than how I've been pitching it, the "long threads" part especially, since that's the moment a screen actually gets painful.
You're also right that bundling the paid tier around the whole listening workflow beats selling it as just "better voices." MP3 export is next, and an offline library plus saved thread collections are on my list, so framing those together as the paid experience makes far more sense than leading with the voices alone.
This is my first side project, so I'm still working out the pricing story, and an outside read like this is exactly what I needed.
And yes, I'd genuinely take you up on the tighter written version if you have the time. No pressure at all if not.
Really appreciate you taking the time to think this hard about a stranger's launch. That kind of generosity sticks with you when you're just starting out.
Glad it helped. And yes, this is exactly the kind of thing where a tighter written version would be more useful than another scattered comment.
The main question is not just “what should cost money?” It’s what paid version feels natural for someone who already wants to save and listen to long threads without friction.
Drop your email and I’ll send over a compact version. I’d keep it focused on the free vs paid split, Android launch pricing, and the first user segment most likely to actually pay.
That reframe is the bit that clicked, it's less about what to fence off and more about what someone who already saves and revisits long threads would pay to make smoother.
Where I'm landing: free is the frictionless loop (queue a thread, listen now), paid is the keeping part you come back to, downloaded and organized so it lives on your device.
So you pay to keep and revisit, not to unlock listening. And yes please to the compact version, especially the 'which segment pays first' part. Would be really appreciated, thanks again Aryan.
For my email, you can reach out on contact@threadcast.app
Just sent you a note.
Kept it focused on the free vs paid split, Android launch pricing, and which ThreadCast user is most likely to pay first.
Appreciate you taking the time, Aryan.
Even just the back and forth here gave me a lot to work with, so thanks again for engaging with a random solo founder's launch.
Appreciate that.
I sent the tighter version to your email earlier. Did you get a chance to check it?
Yes as u saw in our discussion there, checked and replied. Thanks again buddy, really appreciated!