Create a three-speaker podcast from PDFs, notes, slides, articles, reports, or a topic — then switch between audio and a synchronized chapter-slide video in 70+ languages.
An AI podcast generator turns a PDF, notes, slides, an article, a report, or a topic into an episode. Scholarly uses three roles: Cosmo hosts, Sirius produces, and Ursa brings the expertise. Episodes include page references, a synced transcript, chapters, visual companion slides, and a synchronized video mode in 70+ languages. Multi-chapter episodes are playable from chapter 1 while the rest is still recording. New episodes also include timestamped Producer Notes, related resources, and listening check-in questions. Stream and share audio or video on every plan; paid plans can download MP3 and MP4 files.
See it in 60 seconds
Why people choose it
Why people choose Scholarly podcasts
Stop re-reading notes. Listen and learn anywhere, anytime.
Learn anywhere
Turn dead time into study time. An episode keeps playing as you move around the app, drives your lock screen and headset buttons, and picks up where you stopped on any device you sign in from.
Multi-speaker format
Cosmo hosts, Sirius adds context, and Ursa explains your material in a natural conversation.
Customizable styles
Choose from Conversational, Exam Prep, or Deep Dive presets. Add custom instructions.
How it works
How to turn a PDF into a podcast
Three steps, about a minute of your time, hours of audio you can actually listen to.
01
1. Upload your source
Drop in a PDF, slide deck, lecture transcript, image, or just type a topic. Long documents are fine — page limits scale with your plan.
02
2. Choose the style, voices, and language
Pick a style and language, then choose a voice for the guest or leave voice selection on Auto. Every episode keeps the same three roles — a host, a producer, and a guest who brings the expertise — and each speaker's name follows the voice you pick.
03
3. Listen, download, share
Start on chapter 1 while the rest of the episode is still recording, then switch between audio and synchronized chapter-slide video, stream with captions, share one link, or download MP3 and MP4 files on a paid plan.
Everything you get
Everything you need to learn by listening
All the tools to create, navigate, and share your AI study podcasts
Expressive AI Voices
Choose from 26 official multilingual Grok voices. Pick the guest's voice while the host and producer stay as they are, or leave voice selection on Auto. Each speaker's name follows the voice they are given.
Chapters You Can See
Episodes are split into chapters by topic, and the progress bar is split to match — one segment per chapter, so you can see the shape of an episode and where you are in it at a glance. Drag anywhere to scrub, or click a chapter's edge to start it.
Full Transcript
Read along with the transcript. Click any line to jump to that point in the audio.
Synced Captions
Toggle CC to read captions as the conversation plays. Great for noisy rooms or studying in a second language.
Source Citations
Every claim is backed by a citation to your original source with page references — so you can check anything that sounds off before it ends up in your notes.
Producer Notes
Timestamped research briefings pinned to key moments. Jump the player to the note, follow the cited links, or send it into the episode chat.
Video Mode, Downloads & Sharing
Watch the chapter slides in a synchronized 16:9 video and share one episode link on every plan. Paid plans can download MP3 audio or the finished MP4.
Any Source Material
Generate podcasts from PDFs, slides, text files, images, video lectures, research papers — or just describe a topic. An episode built from a file is titled after the conversation inside it, not the file name.
Listen Before It's Finished
On an episode with more than one chapter, chapter 1 becomes playable while the remaining chapters are still being recorded. Start listening straight away — when the full episode is ready, playback switches over and keeps your place.
Pairs with Flashcards & Quizzes
Generate flashcards and quizzes from the same source so you can listen, review, and self-test.
Honest comparison
Scholarly vs. Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM)
Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM) popularized AI podcasts. Scholarly connects audio to a broader learning and knowledge workflow. Here is a direct comparison.
Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM)
Languages supported: 80+ languages for Audio Overviews; the interactive join-in mode is English only.
Conversation styles: Four formats (Deep Dive, Brief, Critique, Debate) with a length toggle and a steering prompt; two hosts, no voice choice.
Connected workflows: General-purpose research notebook with flashcards and quizzes, but no spaced-repetition schedule or graded exams.
Synced captions & transcript: Transcripts available; in-player captions are basic.
Paid MP3 download: Downloadable, but tied to the Google ecosystem.
Free tier: Free Standard tier with a daily Audio Overview allowance; Google AI Pro / Ultra raise the limits.
Research beyond your sources: Audio Overviews stay within your uploaded sources; its Deep Research tool can add web sources to the notebook first.
Built from your material
Scholarly
Languages supported: 70+ languages out of the box.
Conversation styles: Three presets — Conversational, Exam Prep, Deep Dive — plus custom instructions.
Connected workflows: Pairs podcasts with flashcards, quizzes, AI chat, and reusable source workflows.
Synced captions & transcript: Tap any line of the transcript to jump there; toggle captions in-player.
Paid MP3 download: Yes, on paid plans — plus free streaming and share links for everyone.
Free tier: The Free plan includes one shared lifetime AI Creation Credit across Scholarly. It does not reset. Premium includes 10 AI Creation Credits each week. No card required.
Research beyond your sources: New episodes include timestamped Producer Notes with researched, cited context plus a curated Related Resources list.
Pricing and feature availability change — figures reflect public information at the time of writing.
At a glance
What makes the best AI podcast generator for studying?
For studying, Scholarly creates three-speaker podcasts from your course material, including PDFs, lecture notes, slides, and YouTube videos. Each episode includes page references, chapters, and a synced transcript. It is free to try with no credit card.
Sources supported
PDFs, lecture notes, slides, text files, images, YouTube videos — or just type a topic. Combine multiple sources into one episode; page limits scale with your plan.
Grounded in your material
Episodes are scripted only from the sources you upload and cite them with page references — so the audio matches what your exam actually covers.
Transcript included
Every episode ships with a full synced transcript and chapter markers. Click any line to jump to that moment in the audio.
Free to start
The Free plan includes one shared lifetime AI Creation Credit across Scholarly. It does not reset and can be used to try a podcast. Premium includes 10 AI Creation Credits each week. No credit card required.
70+ languages
Generate episodes in the language you study in, or keep the source in one language and listen in another.
Audio and video, yours to share
Stream the audio or synchronized chapter-slide video and share one link on every plan. Paid plans can download the MP3 or MP4.
Active recall built in
New episodes come with interactive check-for-understanding questions that appear as you listen without pausing the audio, plus a full score history for every attempt.
A research layer on every episode
New episodes include timestamped Producer Notes — researched context with validated, cited links — plus a Related Resources shelf of websites, papers, archives, and courses for going beyond the episode.
No waiting for chapter one
Multi-chapter episodes hand you chapter 1 as soon as it is recorded, so you can start listening while the rest is still being made. Playback moves to the finished episode without losing your place.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What people ask before turning their source material into a podcast.
What is an AI podcast generator?
An AI podcast generator turns a PDF, lecture transcript, slide deck, article, report, or topic into a voiced conversation. Scholarly scripts three roles, generates the audio, and adds chapters and a synced transcript. Cosmo hosts, Sirius produces, and Ursa brings the expertise.
Can I make a podcast from a PDF?
Yes. Upload a textbook chapter, research paper, lecture deck, work report, whitepaper, or notes. Scholarly creates a three-speaker podcast with Cosmo as host, Sirius as producer, and Ursa as the guest. You can combine PDFs with images, text files, and YouTube transcripts in one episode.
How long are the podcasts?
Free-plan episodes are fixed at 2 minutes. Paid plans can set a target up to 60 minutes for the same source; the length slider can aim for a shorter review, while Deep Dive can run longer for a chapter you want to truly internalize. The target guides generation rather than guaranteeing an exact runtime.
What languages are supported?
70+ languages, including Spanish, French, German, Hindi, Mandarin, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, Portuguese, and more. You can keep the source in one language and generate the podcast in another — useful for studying or learning a second language.
Is the AI podcast generator free?
Yes. The Free plan includes one shared lifetime AI Creation Credit across Scholarly. It does not reset and can be used to create a podcast. Premium includes 10 AI Creation Credits each week. No credit card required.
Can I download the podcast as audio or video?
Yes. Everyone can stream and share the audio or synchronized chapter-slide video. On paid plans, download the episode as an MP3 for audio apps or as a 16:9 MP4 for offline use and publishing. Paid plans can also download the episode's chapter notes as PowerPoint (.pptx) or save them to Google Slides.
How is this different from Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM)?
Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM) is a general-purpose research notebook whose Audio Overviews come in four formats and 80+ languages, with two hosts and no voice choice. Scholarly offers 70+ languages, a three-speaker format with guest voices, episodes up to 60 minutes with page citations, and three conversation styles: Conversational, Exam Prep, and Deep Dive. You can reuse the same material for flashcards and quizzes.
Can I share the podcast with classmates?
Yes. Every podcast gets a shareable link you can send to friends or post in a class chat. Listeners don't need a Scholarly account to stream it, and you can revoke the link at any time.
What is the best AI podcast generator for studying?
For studying, choose a generator that works from your course material. Scholarly creates three-speaker episodes from PDFs, lecture notes, slides, YouTube videos, or a topic. Each episode includes page references, chapters, and a synced transcript. It supports 70+ languages and is free to try with no credit card.
Can I make a podcast from YouTube videos, slides, or handwritten notes?
Yes. Beyond PDFs, Scholarly generates podcasts from lecture slides, text files, photos of handwritten notes, YouTube videos, and plain topic prompts. You can mix several source types into a single episode — for example, a slide deck plus the recorded lecture it came from — and the episode covers them together.
How do I study with podcasts effectively?
Treat each episode as a first pass: listen once for the big picture, then re-read the source while the structure is fresh, and finally self-test. Because Scholarly generates the podcast from your own material and lets you turn the same source into flashcards and quizzes, listening becomes active review you reinforce with recall — not passive background noise. The same approach works for professionals briefing on a report or researchers digesting papers: chapter markers and the synced transcript let you replay the parts you found hardest.
How do I make a podcast from a PDF?
Upload a textbook chapter, research paper, or slide deck as a PDF, then choose a conversation style and language. Scholarly scripts a three-speaker episode with Cosmo as host, Sirius as producer, and Ursa as the guest. See the AI podcast from PDF guide or open the PDF to Podcast tool.
What are Producer Notes?
Producer Notes are timestamped research briefings included with new Scholarly podcast episodes. While the audio is generated, a research agent studies the same chapters, searches the web, and writes notes with cited, validated links at the moments where extra context helps. You can jump the player to a note's timestamp, open its sources, or send the note into the episode chat to explore it further. Episodes also include a curated Related Resources list for continuing beyond the episode.
Do I have to wait for the whole episode before I can listen?
No. On an episode with more than one chapter, chapter 1 becomes playable while the remaining chapters are still being recorded — so a long episode starts paying off within a minute or two. When the complete episode is ready, playback switches to it and keeps your position.
Scholarly doesn't just call a model once. Each feature is run by an autonomous AI agent that reads your material, reasons across multiple models, and can research the web and run code — then hands back a finished, cited artifact.
Multiple models
Agents route each step to the model that does it best, instead of relying on a single one.
Live web research
When your sources aren't enough, agents search the web and cite what they find.
Runs code in a sandbox
Each agent gets its own sandbox to compute, transform data, and build your artifact.
Grounded in your sources
Every output is built from the PDFs, notes, and lectures you upload — not guesswork.
Trying your first source? Start Free. Working with new material each week? Premium includes 10 AI Creation Credits a week. Need more capacity? Compare Laureate.
1 saved meeting with 30 minutes of transcription and AI notes
5 lifetime quiz questions
1 completed practice exam total
15 lifetime voice minutes
32-page PDF to flashcards
500 lifetime autocomplete words
Use it to generate flashcards, improve a deck, or create a podcast, video lecture, slides, infographic, mind map, study guide, worksheet, spreadsheet, story book, timeline, SOP, flowchart, lesson plan, or outline — or run Deep Research. Your one saved meeting includes its transcript and AI Meeting Notes on top of that.
Pricing shown in USD by default. Local currency may be available in app or at checkout.
Compare plans
AI chat
Premium and Laureate include unlimited AI chat. The chat model menu is a curated selection and is smaller than the creation catalog — some models, including the Frontier tier, are reserved for credit-metered AI creations.
Free
3 total
Premium
Unlimited
Laureate
Unlimited
AI Creation Credits
AI Creation Credits share one balance across every creation tool. Most models use 1 credit, a few use 2, and Frontier models use 3.
Free
1 total
Premium
10/week
Laureate
80/week
Podcast length
Free episodes are fixed at 2 minutes. Paid plans can set a target length up to 60 minutes.
Free
2 minutes
Premium
Up to 60 minutes
Laureate
Up to 60 minutes
Video lecture length
Free lectures with a length control are fixed at 2 minutes. Paid plans can set a target up to 45 minutes. Short uses its own short video format.
Free
2 minutes
Premium
Up to 45 minutes
Laureate
Up to 45 minutes
File uploads
Free
1 total (8MB)
Premium
Unlimited (300MB)
Laureate
Unlimited (1 GB each)
PDF to flashcards
Free
32 pages
Premium
1000 pages
Laureate
3000 pages
Sources per creation
Free
Up to 1
Premium
Up to 10
Laureate
Up to 20
Practice questions
Free
5 total
Premium
Unlimited
Laureate
Unlimited
Practice exams
Free
1 total
Premium
Unlimited
Laureate
Unlimited
Voice mode
Free
15 min total
Premium
2 hr/day
Laureate
12 hr/day
Autocomplete
Free
500 words total
Premium
Unlimited
Laureate
Unlimited
Export to Anki
Free
—
Premium
Included
Laureate
Included
Support
Free
Standard
Premium
Priority
Laureate
Priority
Feature
Free
Premium
Laureate
AI chat
3 total
Unlimited
Unlimited
AI Creation Credits
1 total
10/week
80/week
Podcast length
2 minutes
Up to 60 minutes
Up to 60 minutes
Video lecture length
2 minutes
Up to 45 minutes
Up to 45 minutes
File uploads
1 total (8MB)
Unlimited (300MB)
Unlimited (1 GB each)
PDF to flashcards
32 pages
1000 pages
3000 pages
Sources per creation
Up to 1
Up to 10
Up to 20
Practice questions
5 total
Unlimited
Unlimited
Practice exams
1 total
Unlimited
Unlimited
Voice mode
15 min total
2 hr/day
12 hr/day
Autocomplete
500 words total
Unlimited
Unlimited
Export to Anki
—
Included
Included
Support
Standard
Priority
Priority
What customers say
Scholarly has enhanced the quality of notes and questions I administer to my tutees. Insightful, to the point.
TD Georgas
Tutor
I have very good experience with Scholarly it summarize me scientific text in hovel academic level with citation. I use this for any therapeutic area . It is great and useful tool.
Diana
Scholarly user
Scholarly has been a valuable tool for my studies. The AI-generated flashcards and intuitive features make organizing and retaining information much easier.
Briana
Scholarly user
This app is great for studying for big test. Drop your PDF's in the system and it'll do the trick. You can organize it specifically for your needs.
Kelvin
Scholarly user
Your questions, answered
Is Scholarly free to use?
Yes! The free plan includes core study tools with lifetime allowances: 3 AI Chat messages, 500 autocomplete words, 5 quiz questions, 15 voice minutes, 1 practice exam, one free AI Creation Credit total, and 1 file upload. These allowances do not reset. Upgrade to Premium for 10 AI Creation Credits per week and unlimited uploads.
What uses my free AI Creation Credits?
AI Creation Credits are shared across flashcards, podcasts, videos, slides, AI Documents, Deep Research, and the Transcribe tool. The selected model determines the credit cost. Recording a meeting and saving its transcript never uses AI Creation Credits. On paid plans, Generate notes uses 1 credit per meeting, whatever its length; Free includes notes for its one saved meeting.
Can I cancel anytime?
Absolutely. There are no contracts or commitments. You can cancel your subscription at any time from your account settings, and you'll keep access until the end of your billing period.
What payment methods do you accept?
We accept all major credit and debit cards through Stripe. Pricing is displayed in USD by default, but local currency is available in the app.
Can I use Scholarly with a class or school?
Yes. For a school or organization-wide rollout, contact us at hello@scholarly.so and we'll help you find the right setup.
What happens when I hit a free plan limit?
You'll see a prompt to upgrade. Your existing work is never lost — limits only apply to new actions. Free-plan allowances are lifetime credits and do not reset. Premium includes 10 AI Creation Credits per week, podcasts up to 60 minutes, video lectures up to 45 minutes, unlimited uploads, chat, autocomplete, quizzes, and exams, plus more daily voice time.
