Sounds of the Future - Radio in 2026, Podcaster Emmys, the Clone Voice Army

Chief Audio Officers, rejoice! The Media Roundtable is back, covering this week’s top stories in audio… and there’s a LOT to digest.

Dan Granger (CEO & Founder, Oxford Road) hosts fellow Oxford Road luminaries James Ingrassia (EVP, Client Service), Kyle Jelinek (VP, Client Strategy), and Giles Martin (EVP, Strategy & Insights). The team is talking: Podscribe's International moves, Smart Moms, the VC Podcast Rush, Attack of the Clone (Voices), and so much more. Let’s dive in.

“You could envisage a future where a run-of-network buy was voiced by the person who's hosting each individual show through the power of AI.”

Radio’s Melting Iceberg 🧊 - Traditional radio’s steady revenue decline is... still steadily declining. Streaming and Podcast revenue continues to grow, meaning a pivot point is on the horizon, likely in 2026. Total audio revenue should top $20B by then, with podcast and streaming contributions accounting for more than half. The takeaway for CAOs? Radio’s reach is still massive, and deals are still to be had–it’s absolutely worth adding radio to your audio campaign, if the CPMs are right.

Send in the Clones 👯- AI Voice Cloning–friend or foe? Thanks to ElevenLabs, users can now clone their own voices with startling accuracy. It’s eerie now, but voice cloning may go mainstream sooner rather than later. The upside for marketers (if we don’t erode trust, and with proper acknowledgment), is that programmatic buys with AI host clones are a possibility for every ad. Our hope? Sonic logo usage when a voice is faked/cloned. Maybe we get DJ Khaled to say “Another CL-ONE?” before each AI ad?

And the Emmy goes to... Podcasts?  🏆- YouTube CEO Neal Mohan is pushing hard for creators to get 25% of EGOT (Google it). Creators from MrBeast to Joe Rogan have outsized influence in the culture–should the Emmys recognize them too? This might be a Hollywood fantasy for now, but the takeaway for CAOs is you can’t ignore YouTube’s impact on culture. And the winner is… simulcast?


For audio insights into the future (and present) that you won’t find anywhere else, check out our full episode by opening the envelope to the link below.

Bianca Gorodinsky